Dirty Little Secret
by LittleGreenGirlxx
Summary: Forced into a marriage with an older man, young Elphaba thinks her life is over. That is, until salvation comes to her in the form of a young prince just as unhappy as she is. AU booksical, rated T for later chapters.
1. Prologue

**Well _hello_, my pretties! Long time no story! :D I just entered the Wicked Young Writer's competition...Wonder how that one will pan out? Haha! I'm going to see Wicked again in January! Cannot wait! **

**So, this is something that's been ticking around in my brain for a while...And getting it down on paper has been difficult. But, after _many _attempts, I managed to finish the prologue. Brilliant, innit? ;) **

**I've taken artistic liscence with some things...Like making Elphaba the Thropp Second Descending. I know she's the third. Just _deal with it_. Erm...Yes! That is all! **

**Disclaimer: Still not mine. **

* * *

Melena Thropp strode purposefully along the hallway in Colwen Grounds towards the office of the Eminence of Munchkinland, her elder sister, Eissa. Generations of Thropp women glowered at her from their portraits, each and every one of them possessing a kind of dangerous beauty. The redhead shuddered under their sightless gaze, the pressure of the matriarchal society ever present and heavy on her shoulders.

* * *

She felt like a naughty child about to be punished when she drummed her knuckles meekly on the Quoxwood door.

"Come in," the voice of her sister said from within. The younger woman entered quickly, seeing her Eminence leaning on the window sill, her face thoughtful. "Have a seat, Melly." the woman commanded, not looking up.

Melena sat.

She asked, "Is this anything important, Issy?" after a minute or so of silence. Eissa turned, her steely gaze settling on sister. With a toss of her burnished copper curls, she replied,

"I should say so, yes. It's about your eldest daughter."

"Elphaba? What about her?"

"I have found her a husband. It is about time someone took control of her. All of those_ books_ she reads put ideas in her head. Someone of her…_condition_ should not have delusions of grandeur!" Eissa sniffed, disgust evident in her every word. Her flame-haired sister frowned.

"She's the Thropp Second Descending, Issy. She's genuine royalty, not deluded. And what do you mean, her 'condition'? She's green! Accept it! I have!" she shot, placing her hands firmly on her hips. The Eminence flinched, and shook her head.

"I cannot accept her, Melena. It's an abomination! To think you let her survive for seventeen years without drowning her-"

"**Enough**! What of the husband?"

"Gillikinese,"

"Oh, good. At least you got that part right. Young, handsome and energetic, hopefully? Perhaps a young man between her legs will distract her from politics and-"

"He's seventy four. His eyesight will be failing, so he'll never have the misfortune of looking at her," Eissa said ignoring the indignant fire that rose in her younger sister's eyes.

Melena spluttered, "How_ dare_ you do this to her? I will** not **give my consent, and neither will Frex! I utterly refuse! I'll-". She sprung out of the chair and squared up to Eissa. Her fingers tingled, as though waiting for the chance to strangle the older woman.

"You don't have a choice," Eissa replied. "He arrives tomorrow with his granddaughter. The wedding is in two weeks time. I leave it to you to prepare her." she finished coolly, lazily examining one talon-like red fingernail. Melena screeched in rage and whirled from the room in a billow of dusky pink silk, anger bubbling in the pit of her stomach.

* * *

**So...Keep writing? Pack it up in a box and leave it for the Council to pick up so that you never have to think about it again? Your choice. Fill me in. **

xx


	2. Chapter 1

**So, here is the first proper chapter. NOTE: Fiyero won't be in it 'til the next one, or possibly the one after. But don't worry. He'll get here. **

**Thanks to DEgreeniFYgravity for reviewing 1. **

* * *

Elphaba heaved a dejected sigh and slumped down into a chair, holding one hand out towards the light. Her harlequin green skin took on an almost blue tinge in the harsh midday sun, and her chocolate eyes narrowed hatefully as she took it in.

An unnatural colour.

A snort of derision escaped her every time that adjective was used to describe her. Green; the very colour of nature itself, considered unnatural. Her parents and siblings had grown to look past it, and see the passion and beauty she possessed underneath. But her Aunt, the Eminent Thropp, would never look past it. She had condemned the girl to a life in an unhappy marriage just because of her own prejudice.

Elphaba hated her for it.

* * *

Rilt Upland of the Arduennas was small and frail, with milky blue eyes and thinning silver hair. He shook Elphaba's hand, his grasp weak.

"Very nice to meet you, my dear." he croaked, leaning a little closer to her, peering at her with his better eye. Her stomach heaved as he licked his lips hungrily, a less than savoury expression on his sagging face.

"You too," she shuddered, wriggling her thin fingers out of his grip and retreating a few steps. The girl behind him gazed sympathetically at her with wide green eyes, the corners of her perfect pink lips turned down slightly in distaste.

"Why don't you go for your afternoon nap, Grandpoppy?" the girl encouraged, turning him by the elbow in the direction of the stairs. He shuffled off on the arm of the Butler, his breathing ragged.

Elphaba smiled thankfully at her, noting that she too was about seventeen. Elphaba herself was relatively small [although not as small as a farm Munchkin] but this girl surpassed her easily, barely reaching the taller girl's phosphorescent shoulder.

"Galinda Upland," the girl said smilingly, with a subtle toss of her golden curls. "Sorry about him, by the way. He's a bit difficult to deal with sometimes." she added, her tone heavy with disapproval.

"Welcome, Galinda. I'm Elphaba,"

"I'm sure we'll be great friends!"

"I hope so…" Elphaba smiled shyly, gazing at her heavy army boots. It was unusual for anyone to be so polite, nay, _friendly_, on first meeting her. Normally there was at least five minutes of awkward silence while they took in her '_interesting'_ pigmentation. Galinda Upland, however, seemed to be above such things, and Elphaba didn't know how to react.

* * *

"You're very green, aren't you?" Galinda mused after a few minutes of polite small talk. Elphaba's eyebrows shot up, practically past her hairline.

"_Excuse _me?" she cried, one hand flying to her throat in offence. The blonde girl's features contorted, horrified.

"Oh, no! I didn't mean in a _bad_ way! I just meant-"

"I know what you _meant_, Miss Galinda. I've had to put up with your sort all my life, I'm used to it!" Elphaba spat, whirling around and striding away. The smaller girl looked helplessly after her, her arms hanging limply by her sides.

"Well, _that _went well!" she muttered, plopping defeatedly into a chair by the fire.

* * *

Melena entered the library quietly, spying her eldest daughter curled up on the other side of the room. She was secreted at the foot of one of the massive bookshelves, her knees clutched defensively to her chest. The black silk of her hair hung like a curtain over her face; a barrier behind which she could hide from the world.

"Fabala?"

Elphaba's head snapped up, her ochre eyes distant. At the sight of her Mother, her stiff posture relaxed slightly, and her lips twitched into a reluctant smile when Melena sank down next to her. She snaked a long arm around her daughter's emerald shoulders.

"Tell Mama," she soothed, resting her fiery head against the raven one.

"Why is Aunt Eissa making me do this?" Elphaba whispered, huddling against the motherly side. Melena hesitated, and her sharp daughter immediately caught on. "It's because of my skin, isn't it? She doesn't think I would ever be able to marry without her help, because everyone thinks it's so _horrible_. They're right, too." The girl gulped and let her nails claw down the tender flesh of her arms, leaving nasty red scratch marks.

"_Stop _it, Elphaba!" Melena commanded, turning around and grasping the offending hands within her own.

"But it's the truth!"

"Your aunt is simply an old witch who cannot see past the end of her nose, and I don't want you to pay any attention to her!"

"She hates everything about me, mother. She hates my skin, she hates that I have some kind of magic in my veins, she even hates that I prefer books to parties. It's hard to ignore her constant _scolding_."

"Well, we can just hold on to the hope that this old cretin pops his clogs some time in the very near future. Then you can go out and fall in love and get married to someone _you _want. In the meantime, we'll make do with what we've got." Melena smiled, heartened by Elphaba's amused snort at her first sentence.

"Thank you, mother." she whispered as her mother stood.

"That's what I'm here for, my sweet. Now, come, it's time for dinner."

* * *

Shell and Nessarose, Elphaba's younger siblings, surreptitiously flicked peas at one another from opposing sides of the table, making the older girl roll her eyes.

"Can't you behave for _once, _Nessa?" she muttered to the girl of fifteen to her right. Her sister ignored her and flicked viciously at another pea, hitting their brother square between the eyes. He sat, stunned, with his eyes crossed, trying to see the point of impact. The green girl sighed and returned to her food.

She resolved was never to have children. They were too much work, and never paid her any heed.

* * *

Miss Galinda was seated to her immediate left, and she kept trying to catch her eye. Elphaba kept her eyes away from her, instead choosing to indulge in some silly conversation with her father, Frex. As her Aunt commanded the attention of the table, Galinda used her cunningly sharp elbows as an offensive weapon, digging one into Elphaba's side. A kind of strangled exclamation escaped the back of Elphaba's throat, and she finally turned to face the blonde.

"I'm _sorry_!" Galinda hissed, trying to keep her voice down. Elphaba wrinkled her nose, and the girl continued. "You misunderstood what I was trying to say. I _like _the colour of your skin! I think it's unusual, yes, but it's pretty. And if you don't stop jumping down people's throats like that, you're not going to get on very well in life." Elphaba snorted unattractively, but bit her lip. She knew the blonde was right.

"_Pretty_ isn't exactly a word I'd use to describe it. But...I'm sorry too. I'm just…sensitive about it. I usually have to defend myself, I didn't realise…"

"Well, yes. Apology accepted. Now…Let's be friends!" As Galinda said this, her voice rose dramatically in pitch, a beaming smile decorating her perfect face. Elphaba arched one immaculate eyebrow, but let a reluctant smile creep onto her face.

A friend.

A friend that wasn't a sibling or a parent. An actual friend. It was new, and it felt nice.

Across the table, Rilt fell asleep with his face in the mashed potato.

* * *

**Please review? :D **


	3. Chapter 2

**I think this chapter is filler-ish...But we need it, okay? :) Review, please! I feel like this story is unloved, and if people don't like it I'll just take it down again.**

* * *

"Does it look okay?" Elphaba fretted, biting her lip and shuffling from foot to foot as she stood in her wedding dress. A tear rose in Melena's eye, and Galinda quickly passed her a lace handkerchief to wipe it away.

"You look…_stunning_, Fabala!" Nessarose gasped, taking in her older sister with her huge brown eyes. Elphaba flushed a darker green, and gazed down at the frock.

It was floor length and empire line, with short, fitted sleeves and a chapel train. It was pretty, and, under better circumstances, Elphaba would secretly rather like it. But now, just the sight of the airy skirt and beaded bodice made her want to vomit.

"Oh, Elphie!" Galinda sighed, bestowing the nickname upon the green girl as though they had known each other for years rather than just days. Elphaba cocked an eyebrow slightly, but didn't question it. Offending her new friend wasn't exactly on the top of her agenda.

"You really are quite beautiful, Elphaba," the blonde smiled wistfully, standing up to fluff the brunette's skirts and adjust her hair. She shrugged away from the touch, turning to face her reflection on the mirror.

Elphaba's fingers twitched convulsively, and she plucked ineffectually at the gauze of the skirt. It fell steadily in an A-line fashion to the floor, wispy and white. She raised her dark eyes to the emerald face staring back at her and felt a wave of repulsion rise from the pit of her stomach. Without warning, she calmly wrapped her spidery fingers around the right sleeve of the dress and tugged sharply. It ripped at the seam, and three horrified gasps issued from the group behind her.

"Elphaba!" Melena cried, leaping to her feet. "What in the name of Lurline are you _doing_?"

Her daughter ignored her, violently detaching the other sleeve. Her eyes narrowed and she slightly bared her teeth.

She looked truly _frightening_.

Elphaba clawed at the beads on the bodice of the dress, savouring the clink of each as it fell to the wooden floor. Nessarose began to cry, fearing that her older sister had gone raving mad. With a final anguished cry, Elphaba tore at the skirt of the dress, eliciting a huge rip all the way around, front to back, floor to bust in a spiral.

She slumped to the floor amid the fabric and beads, her eyes wide.

Terrified.

Like a deer in that had dashed unthinkingly in front of a carriage and had realised it's fate when it was too late.

Nessarose ran from the room, her hand held to her mouth like she was trying to bite back tears. Melena bit her lip, but chose to follow her younger daughter. Galinda stayed, stepping slowly towards her new friend. Elphaba didn't cry, although her breath came in huge racking gasps. She gazed down at the abused garment, a distant kind of remorse creeping into her vacant eyes.

"Oh!" she whispered, true shock registering on her face. "I didn't- I mean, I-" Her expression was horrified. Galinda waved her hands dismissively.

"If you didn't like the dress, you could just have said!" she frowned, picking up a strip of delicate gauze and pouting in displeasure. A low laugh issued from Elphaba's throat, and she flicked away a few beads with her long fingers.

"I did like the dress. Sort of." She admitted. "I just _cannot _do this. I don't know why I'm telling you this, I mean he's your grandfather, but seeing myself standing there in that dress…And I don't know what I've done so wrong that means I have to be forced into this."

"You haven't done anything wrong."

"I must have done, or else my _bitch _of an aunt wouldn't be doing this to me." the green girl spat, and Galinda coloured a little at the language. Instead of chiding her new friend, she offered her a hand to stand up. She smiled, "Come on. We'll go find your mother."

* * *

The crunch of wheels on the gravel outside roused Elphaba from her book. It took her a few moments to return to normality, so caught up had she been in the thrilling romance she had been reading. She stowed it haphazardly under the window seat, lest someone should see the kind of un-intellectual material she secretly indulged in.

The girl peeked around the corner in the foyer to see her mother, father and aunt welcoming a man and a woman in luxuriant violet robes. They were very attractive, with sleek black hair and shining eyes. They passed through to the sitting room, leaving a young man of about nineteen or twenty trailing in their wake. He was obviously their son, as he possessed the same lightly tanned skin and sapphire eyes, only his hair was a little lighter.

He was possibly the most beautiful boy Elphaba had ever seen.


	4. Chapter 3

**Okay, so I had a bit of a temper tantrum diva fit the other day. It's all over and the fic is NOT on hiatus. I'll continue to write, for myself and the few people who read this regularly. Review, if you like. **

* * *

Fiyero Tiggular perched on the edge of the stiff leather chair, his hands clasped underneath his chin. He gazed lazily at the sideboard opposite him, finding nothing of interest. His parents were locked in an intense conversation with the Eminence of Munchkinland, and he was being left out like a child who should be seen and not heard.

He yawned.

Because of their position as royalty - the Tiggulars were the ruling family of the Vinkus - they had been invited a week early to spend some time with the Thropps before the wedding. Fiyero had never met the daughter, Elphaba, and he was intrigued by all of the rumours. Some said she was crippled, others that she had some kind of skin condition that kept her inside the house.

Right on cue, a girl in a shapeless blue dress entered the room. Her hair fell, poker straight, to her waist. It was thick, shiny and black, with a silky appearance. Her eyes were large and mournful, the colour of overturned earth flecked with aventurine. The rest of her features were prettily formed, even if her nose was slightly too long in the bridge. With calm surprise, Fiyero noticed the peculiar hue of her skin: a pale, pretty green.

Elphaba cast her eyes in his direction, nodding stiffly in acknowledgement. Her mother and father welcomed her with a smile, and made to introduce her. Eissa, on the other hand, jumped to her feet and stomped towards her young niece.

"How _dare _you interrupt our conversation without a thought, you little toad!" she chastised, landing a sharp slap on the emerald cheek. The girl did not flinch, but turned the powerful force of her eyes disdainfully upon her aunt.

"I thought I would come and introduce myself to our guests, Aunt," she said coolly. "Since they are here for _my _wedding, I deemed it polite."

Eissa pursed her lips and she returned to her place on the settee. Fiyero noticed Elphaba's mother's fingers curl in anger.

Being a gentleman, he immediately rose and extended a hand towards the girl. She took it with a faint smile, and her grip was firm and determined.

"Fiyero," he grinned.

"Elphaba," she replied, directing her steady gaze to his bright eyes. Neither relinquished their grip on the other's hand, and they locked their eyes, coffee and sapphire. Each of the older people in the room could feel the palpable intensity radiating between the pair.

A few silent moments passed, before Fiyero dropped his eyes. "These are my parents, Biaxana and Follor, King and Queen of the Vinkus." he motioned to the pair on the settee, and Elphaba's eyes widened.

"Oh! Your majesties!" she gasped, turning quickly and bobbing an elegant curtsey. Eissa glared at Elphaba, nodding briefly at the boy she had turned her back on. Stifling a sigh, the green girl curtsied to him also.

"Your highness."

* * *

The eve of the wedding.

Melena and Elphaba decided to take a turn about the gardens, linking arms and meandering among the shrubbery.

"Dear…You know that tomorrow is your wedding night?" Melena ventured, regret colouring her tone. Elphaba looked away and nodded.

"I plan to drink as much wine as I can lay my hands on, Mother." she smiled wryly. The redhead chuckled a little, and stopped walking.

"You know your duty then, my sweet?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Of course I know. How could I not?"

"You know…what happens?"

"I know the basic mechanics of it, anyway. And, like I said, I plan to be entirely off my head with alcohol. I'm not entirely sure I plan to be conscious when it happens." the daughter sighed, perching listlessly on a low stone wall. Melena perched next to her, a sympathetic smile on her lips.

"If only you were marrying a nice young man! Someone who could make tomorrow special for you-"

"There's no use _wishing _for things to change, Mother. Wishing only wounds the heart and soul, because nothing ever comes of it. I'll put up with my lot in life; there's nothing I can do about it."

"But Fabala-"

"If this marriage has brought me anything worthwhile, it's Galinda. I've never had a real friend before, save you, Papa, Nessa and Shell. Even when Rilt dies, I think we'll stay friends. I hope." Elphaba sighed, rubbing the goose bumps from her forearms.

* * *

A while later, as the sun was setting, Melena left Elphaba to return indoors. The younger woman kept walking, eyeing a small gazebo at the far end of the rose garden. Upon reaching it, she entered and flopped onto the cushioned seat.

"Hello," a quiet voice on her left murmured. She jumped and her heart stuttered briefly. Fiyero leaned out from the shadows, a serene smile on decorating his handsome features.

"Oh, your Highness, you scared me half to death!" Elphaba cried, fanning herself in an attempt to calm down. The young prince chuckled and murmured an apology.

* * *

"Are you nervous? About tomorrow, I mean?" he asked after a few minutes of comfortable silence. Elphaba didn't think twice about telling him the truth.

"Dreadfully," she admitted, her features drooping in sadness. Fiyero scooted closer, and she continued. "I know I should be grateful to my Aunt. I mean, she's spared me the pain of a loveless life. Or, at least, I can pretend that she has…Will you ever have to marry?" she quizzed, shaking her hair from her face.

"One day. If I don't find the right girl by the time I'm twenty five, my parents will _find _someone for me. Why didn't you get the same chance?".

Fiyero was curious as to why the intriguing girl was being denied the chance to find love. It was obvious that this marriage was entirely the wrong path for her. Elphaba raised an eyebrow incredulously, and motioned to her harlequin green face.

"No man in his right mind would want _this_," she snorted. Fiyero pressed his lips into a hard line, annoyed at her self deprecating words.

"It's different, and there's nothing wrong with that. I, personally, find it quite attractive. And trust me, I know. I've had my fair share of girlfriends. None of them were as interesting as you are." he smiled, and Elphaba wrinkled her nose at the praise.

"You've abused the privilege of trying to find a wife, haven't you?" she sniggered. The young man shrugged.

"I have, and I'm not proud of it. It's amazing, all those girls and I still…" he trailed off, shifting uncomfortably.

"You're really unhappy, aren't you?" Elphaba sighed, her eyes wide with empathy. He held his hand out, and she took it willingly.

"Not as unhappy as you are, I'll bet." He laughed wistfully and squeezed her fingers. An icy rush erupted in her stomach, and she plucked nervously at a loose thread on her dress.

Silence reigned.

"Have you never even been _kissed_?" The prince asked suddenly, winding his fingers through Elphaba's. The girl started at the unexpected voice, then frowned, her lips parting slightly in surprise.

"No," she replied simply, as though only just realising the truth of the fact.

"I could kiss you, if you'd like." Fiyero ventured nervously. Something flared in Elphaba's heart, and she nodded. If this was going to be the first and last chance she got to kiss a real life handsome prince, then by _Oz _was she going to take it, and to hell with the consequences.

"Okay then. Kiss me. "


	5. Chapter 4

**Thank you to the people who reviewed the last chapter. I'm trying to keep it going at a reasonable pace; I don't want to rush it, but I don't want to drag it out. I think it'll be a while yet, though. **

**As for those of you who didn't want the wedding to happen...It's happening. Poor Rilt ;P I didn't go into much detail about the wedding, because I didn't want it to happen much myself! **

* * *

In the brief moment of enticing hesitation before he kissed her, Fiyero wondered what on earth possessed him. He barely knew the girl, but something about her lifted his lonely spirit, and ignited a spark in his unhappy heart. He felt guilty that he had so abused his freedom, when she had none.

A heartbeat passed, and he leaned down towards her. She could feel his breath on her face, and the urge to run almost overpowered her. Seeing the fear in her dark eyes, Fiyero pressed a gentle kiss on the corner of her lips before drawing away again, gauging her reaction. She leaned towards him as though magnetically drawn to him, her eyes half closed.

He kissed her again, fervently this time. Her kisses were clumsy and inexperienced, but her arms snaked around his neck and her fingers tangled in his dark hair. He rested his hands on her waist, noticing the gentle curves that her too-big dress had previously hidden. An intense shudder of heat rushed up their spines simultaneously, and a wave of belonging swept over them.

* * *

After a few moments they broke apart and she grinned at him sheepishly. He did not remove his hands until she shook out of reach, bashfully brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Thank you," Elphaba murmured, subconsciously raising a finger to her lips where the feeling of his still remained.

"My pleasure," Fiyero replied. The sun had set completely, and Elphaba stood up, stretching her harlequin arms above her head.

"You have a big day tomorrow," the young man sighed, standing up beside her. "You had better get off to bed and get a good sleep."

Elphaba wrinkled her nose but nodded, linking her pinkie finger with his.

'_If I had been born normal,' _she thought, _'I would be marrying __**him **__tomorrow.' _

_

* * *

_

The young pair parted in the main foyer of the house, and Elphaba hurried up to her bedroom like a madwoman. She closed the door quietly behind her and sank to the floor, leaning her back against it. A tiny smile broke across her face, quickly expanding into a jubilant grin. She began to sing softly to herself, a new, lively sparkle in her mournful eyes.

Dancing around the room, she changed into her nightclothes then twirled and fell onto her bed, cocooning herself in the feather duvet. The fear of her wedding was reduced to a dull pang at the back of her mind, and, for the first night in her life, Elphaba fell asleep with a smile on her face.

* * *

"Elphaba! Get up!" Eissa shrilled, striding purposefully into the large bedroom and throwing open the curtains. The weather seemed to echo Elphaba's feelings on the events of the day, as rain poured with abandon from the charcoal grey sky. For a few moments, she ignored the older woman as she bustled around the room, before sitting up and rubbing her eyes. A thrill of horror rose in her chest as she spied her Aunt taking her wedding dress out of the wardrobe, setting it out at the end of the bed.

"You'd better be up and washed in five minutes. Melena, Nessarose and the Glinda girl will be in presently to help you get ready." The Eminence snapped.

"It's _Galinda_. With a 'Ga'." Elphaba shouted at her retreating back, rolling onto her stomach and pulling the duvet over her head.

* * *

Nessarose and Galinda were decked out in a pale mint green, a colour Elphaba had deliberately chosen to anger her aunt. They entered the little chapel attached to Colwen Grounds, smiling at the assembled guests. Elphaba and her father, Frex, waited outside the huge doors. She fidgeted from foot to foot, picking the petals from the amnesia roses that made up her bouquet. Frex slid an arm around her shoulders, kissing her cheek encouragingly.

"You'll be alright, Fabala." he soothed, liking his arm through hers. "You know I don't approve of this marriage, and I don't want to give you away to anyone but the man you deserve…"

"I know, Father." the girl replied stiffly, squeezing his hand.

Elphaba's stomach jolted uncomfortably as she heard the string quartet strike up into the familiar wedding march. Inhaling through her nose, she allowed her father to lead her into the main hall of the chapel. The young woman planted one foot stoically in front of the other like a mechanical doll.

She spied Rilt at the other end of the aisle being supported by the best man, Galinda's father, Tush. Some of the guests smiled at her, others glowered disapprovingly. She glimpsed Fiyero out of the corner of her eye, and couldn't stop her head turning to look at him. She gave him a tiny grin, and he winked and poked his tongue out in reply. Frex followed her gaze, and jerked her elbow.

"Come on," he whispered, almost pulling her the rest of the way down the plush red carpet.

Rilt took her soft skinned, youthful hand in his own withered one and they repeated their vows. To Elphaba, each word felt like a nail in her coffin. When the old man croaked 'I do', she realised that her life was now at an end. When he planted his puckered mouth on hers, she couldn't help but compare the cold, shrivelled lips of Rilt with the warm, supple ones of Fiyero.

Once the register was signed and they had left the chapel, Elphaba pulled a small flask of alcohol out from under her dress, where it had been attached to her garter. Taking a hearty swig, she was sure that this would be a routine for the rest of her married life.

The rest of the night passed in a blur of bright lights and bottles of sharp tasting liquid.

* * *

The next morning, the newly married girl was awoken by an unwelcome drumming on her head. She groaned and batted her hands at the source of the noise, before realising that it was _inside _her head. She sat up slowly, massaging her temples.

To her surprise and delight, she was alone, and only a few spots of blood on her white sheets and on her nightgown indicated that there had been another person in the room. A flash of gold on her left hand brought a sudden need to vomit upon her, and she dashed into the en-suite bathroom.

"Elphaba!" a low voice cried from nowhere, and a soft hand pulled the hair back from her face. "That's it, get it all up," Fiyero soothed, rubbing gentle circles on her back.

"Wha-wha-what are y-you doing here?" she croaked, retching again.

"I came to say goodbye,"

"Goodbye?"

Elphaba sat up too fast, and her head began to spin. Slumping against the cold tiles on the wall, she gripped the young man's hand desperately.

"I have to go back to the Vinkus, now that the wedding is over. There's no reason for me to stay." Sadness coloured his tone as he talked of leaving.

"Yes there is! I need you here! My parents and siblings are going away, and Galinda is going back to the Pertha Hills…You're the closest thing to a friend I'll have in this hell!" the girl said, her voice choked in the back of her throat. A dry sob issued from her mouth, and the world swam before her eyes.

"I have a bride to find," the young man murmured, holding her hair back again as she continued to throw up. Elphaba leaned back against him, and Fiyero kissed her temple comfortingly.

"Promise me you'll write?" she croaked, gazing up at him with bleary eyes.

"I'll write _all _the time. I feel like I've known you forever already! It's very strange…"

"You're beautiful, you know that?" Elphaba smiled lopsidedly, one brown orb sliding out of focus. Fiyero chuckled self-consciously, knowing that this was very, very, _very _out of character.

"You're still drunk," he stated, wiping the sweat from her forehead. She giggled girlishly, and nodded.

"No I'm not…" The contradiction made him laugh, and once she had brushed her teeth, he helped her back to bed. She fell asleep with her head on his shoulder, and every now and then she would whimper softly in obvious fear. Fiyero kissed the top of her head, and sang quietly to soothe her.

* * *

When Elphaba awoke again, she found Fiyero leaving the room. He turned to her and waved, and she smiled in return. They both knew, through some obscure twist of fate, they had not seen the last of each other.

* * *

**Review? :P **


	6. Chapter 5

**This chapter is not my favourite, but it'll do. It's only really here to move us along a little, and to develop relationships. Review, if you feel like it :) I used a bit of inspiration from the novel of Wicked in this chapter, just so you don't think I'm not aware of it. **

**Sorry for any grammatical or spelling mistakes. **

* * *

"It's strange to think that you won't be here anymore," Elphaba sighed, folding a cotton blouse and packing it neatly into the designer suitcase.

"Elphie, you won't even notice I'm gone," smiled Galinda, arranging her shoes in order of colour inside their separate case. The deepest reds made way for the salmons, which seeped into the light pinks, before running into the sparkling whites. The little Gillikinese girl had a _lot _of shoes. Her companion snorted unattractively.

"You won't be there to bounce around the corner just when I need to talk to you! There will be a definite lack of _spring _and _energy _in the house by tonight."

"I could try and enchant my letters to bounce, I suppose. A locomotion charm, and then something to make it hop around the room…"

"I'd like to _read _the letters, Galinda, not have to chase them around the house!" Elphaba laughed, and her friend joined her, sinking onto the bed. The pair continued to fold the clothes, piling them methodically away.

* * *

"I wish…" The blonde trailed off, a slightly guilty expression reaching her emerald eyes.

"You wish what?" Elphaba queried, casting a wary eye over her friend.

"I wish that we had become friends under better circumstances."

"What better circumstances could we wish for? I was forced into a marriage to your grandfather because of the prejudices of my powerful aunt, making me your new grandmother. What _could _be better?" the green girl spat, her voice heavy with irony. Galinda sympathised with her pain, and didn't take the tone to heart.

"Oh, I'm sure I can think of something," she smiled mischievously, plopping an unsightly orange hat onto her flaxen head. "We could have met at school! We would both have been _top _of all the classes we took. We could go to parties every weekend, and have handsome boyfriends, and share a room with each other."

Elphaba laughed, and Galinda continued, "We could become the most famous girls in Oz, and we could do so much to help people and Animals! And we could marry our dream husbands, and populate our palaces in the emerald city with little Elphabas and Galindas. Now, I don't know about you, but I far prefer _that _life to this."

"It does sound nice…But I don't want children." the green girl said staunchly, pursing her lips.

"Why ever not?"

"I don't have an _ounce _of motherly feeling about me, Galinda. And anyway, I wouldn't wish…_this _on an innocent child."

"What in heaven's name are you talking about, dear?" Galinda quizzed, slightly confused as to what '_this' _was.

"My skin," Elphaba sighed. Children of her own was another thing that would be she would be robbed of because of her strange colouring.

* * *

Elphaba stood stiffly at Rilt's side, waving forlornly after the gilded carriage that carried Galinda. The old man had a fond smile on his face as he waved, and it was clear to anyone that he completely doted on his young granddaughter. His new wife swallowed her pride, and turned to face him.

"Thank you," she murmured, and he cocked an eyebrow, confused. "For bringing Galinda with you, I mean. She's the first real friend I've ever had," Elphaba admitted, her eyes settling on the floor. Her husband chuckled gently.

"There will not be many more like Galinda, Elphaba. She's a good girl, and I'm proud of her." he stated, and the pair started back towards the house together.

* * *

"What was your job? Before you married into the Arduenna clan, I mean." Elphaba questioned, sitting opposite the man in the main parlour. He smiled, and his milky eyes became distant.

"I was in the Emerald City Army. I enlisted when I was fourteen, to try and earn some money for my family. It was during the war for the Glikkus, and I had twelve siblings. I was the eldest, and my father was dying of an unknown virus. I killed many Munchkinland soldiers, and helped to secure the Glikkus for Gillikin." Rilt removed his spectacles, polishing them on his waistcoat.

"Life in the trenches was difficult. You have no idea how many of my friends died in my arms, and how many of them disappeared without a trace. The war continued until I was eighteen, when I returned home. My father was dead, four of my sisters and one of my brothers were dead, and my mother was gravely ill."

"I got a job in a munitions factory, and one day, on my way to work, a blonde beauty passed me in a carriage. I followed it right from the centre of Shiz until it reached a huge house in the hills. The Arduenna family lived there, and the young daughter was the most beautiful girl I have _ever _seen. I courted her, and we married."

Here Rilt paused, and Elphaba heaved a sigh. She secretly thrilled at his tale, and felt a whole new wave of sympathy for the old man who's beginnings had been so difficult. He continued,

"Once we were married, Julitta showed her true colours. She was a cold, and heartless, and I grew to hate her. She was something like you, really. Beautiful, exotic…And yet totally unreachable. I suppose it's my destiny to feel an overwhelming aversion to my wives. You were both so…ghastly. Perhaps that's why I couldn't sustain any real intimacy on our wedding night. You were out cold, and I could see the colour of your skin so _clearly_… It was consummated, but barely. I tried, but it was all I could do to keep myself from vomiting."

The green girl gasped, and leapt to her feet. In three long strides she was out of the room, concealing her tears by letting a veil of dark hair fall over her face. She found herself at the back of the house, and slumped down next to a neatly pruned hedge. Her sharp nails dug into her scalp, and Elphaba let the tears flow. They streamed down her cheeks, sliding gracefully from the end of her chin and onto the grass at her feet.

The sound of footsteps approached, and Elphaba hurriedly wiped the salt water from her face and sniffed loudly.

"What's wrong, toad face?" Eissa asked, strolling into view from behind a marble statue. Her niece narrowed her eyes disdainfully, glaring with absolute hatred. "You're all alone again, toad face? No-one wants you. Your mother never wanted you; you were just the product of her lonliness while your 'father' was away. An _accident_. An _embarrassment._" the woman shrieked, cackling viciously and walking towards the back door.

The young girl stared at the gargoyles on the roof, fighting to control her temper. She focused on one with a snarling face and wide eyes, the blood coursing through her veins like fire. As Eissa neared the house, a loud rumbling could be heard.

There was a crack, and the gargoyle fell.

Eissa gazed up at the falling object, and barely had time to blink before it landed, smashing her skull mid screech.

She fell to the ground, absolutely dead.

* * *

**Whoops...**


	7. Chapter 6

**One word : Filler. Sorry, but we need it. **

**Thank you to Beautifull Tragic Girl for plugging this story on her own, 'Defying All Odds'. It was really lovely of her, and I suggest that you all go and read her work, she's very good. **

**Review, if you like. **

* * *

'_My dear Elphaba,_

_I'm sorry to hear of the death of your Aunt. What a horrible way to die! Being crushed by a falling gargoyle…It defies belief. I have a sneaking suspicion that you don't actually care much that the old witch is dead, do you? Don't worry, I don't blame you; not after what she did to you. Have a drink for me in celebration, how about that? _

_My parents are still trying to coerce me into finding a bride, and can't seem to understand why I won't let them choose for me yet. I'm rather ashamed to admit that I've fallen into my old ways since I returned home…I have been out to dinner with four girls in the week and a half since I saw you last. I can almost see you rolling your eyes at me, Elphaba! But you mustn't scold me, because I'm only doing as I'm told, like a good son. It's a pity the girl I __would __have chosen to marry is already taken…But that's for another letter!_

_Did you get the drawing I sent you? It's of my horse, Holtz, and I though you'd like it. She's a beauty, isn't she? Fifteen and a half hands high, no less, and as black as…well, as black as your hair. Although, in saying that, she doesn't have the little flashes of violet and blue that your hair has…'_

* * *

Elphaba sighed lightly and looked up from the letter, glancing at the beautifully drawn Vinkun mare, who stood resplendently with her head held high. The image of Fiyero riding that beautiful beast was a charming one, and the sympathetic pencil lines made the girl realise how strong a bond the Prince had with his horse. The letter continued.

* * *

'_She's basically the only girl who has never let me down or only wanted me for my money or position…Holtz is my best friend, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. At least, not to you. _

_How are things going with dear, darling Riltikins? Is he just as charming as ever? I'm sure he is. And I hope you haven't been drinking yourself into any more stupors, my dear girl! We can't have you being sick when I'm not there to help you, now can we? Promise me you'll keep away from the drink, though, in all seriousness. Take it from one who has too many blank nights to be comfortable: __don't do it. __Write to me instead! _

_Anyway, my Mother is laughing at me, because apparently this is the longest letter I've ever written. She says she didn't know I knew enough words to write a passage this long. The cheek of it! One day, I swear I'll prove her wrong. I'll prove them all wrong. _

_Yours, _

_Fiyero'_

* * *

The young woman set aside the piece of paper, letting her eyes linger for a fraction of a second on the writer's small, cramped handwriting. She smiled, and picked up another letter, this time in elegant, flowing script. It read:

'_Dear Elphie,_

_How dreadful for you, to see your Aunt die so frightfully! I'm sure if I had been in your situation I would have screamed the whole place down. Of course, you're a much braver woman that me; that goes without saying. I hope Grandpoppy is taking good care of you, no matter what strange antipathy you have towards each other. Not that I blame you, dear, not in your situation. _

_Oh, Oz! I entirely forgot to tell you! I, Galinda Upland, have __changed my name__! I am now…__Glinda __Upland! I'm not sure what brought about such a drastic turn, if I'm being truthful. I think I simply wanted to be different! Why on earth not? Being different is fun, isn't it Elphie?_

_I'll come and see you at Lurlinemas, but I have a dance lesson in less than fifteen clock ticks, and I'm running late. So adieu, my friend!_

_Love, cuddles, smiles and rainbows, _

_Glinda Upland of the Arduennas, Pertha Hills, Gillikin'_

* * *

Though much shorter than her previous, Glinda's letter still managed to exude the same kind of vibrant energy that characterised the blonde. Elphaba grinned and shook her head and the girl's conviction in as little a matter as removing one letter from her name. It was endearing, much as she hated to admit it. Weighing up the two letters, Elphaba decided to reply to Fiyero first.

'_My dear Fiyero, _

_How is it that you know my character so well after knowing me less than a month? I'm not too shy to admit that no, I am __not __sorry that Eissa is dead. It's a bit of a bother, because I'm supposed to be going to her funeral this morning, but I'm thinking of pleading a headache and staying at home. Father says that I must go, but I know mother will take my side if I plead enough. And I think I'll have quite a few drinks on you, if you don't mind. Lurline knows I need them. _

_The drawing of Holtz was beautiful, Fiyero! I had no idea you could draw so well. Your horse looks absolutely exquisite, what is she like to ride? I love horses, and I have my own Vinkun stallion here. He's fifteen hands, and the most gorgeous chestnut colour. I tried to draw him when I got your letter, but it ended up looking like the lovechild of a lopsided table and a kitchen mop, so I put it in so that you could have a good laugh at it. Don't be too cruel about it though…I'm not much of an artist!_

_Those poor girls. I hope you're not letting them think that they have a chance. It will have to be someone very, very special for you to marry her, and I pity the poor girl when you fall hopelessly in love with her. Who's the girl that you __would __marry? Do I know her? Is she Vinkun? Is she beautiful? I expect she is. You would never fall in love with someone who wasn't beautiful. _

_Oh, Rilt is as darling as ever. I actually just laughed out loud writing that, as he's worse than he ever was. He said some horrible things to me a few days ago, on the day that Aunt Eissa died. That's why I was out in the garden. I wasn't crying, because I never cry. I was just trying to control my temper. Of course. _

_I can't promise that I'll stay entirely away from the alcohol, dear. Sometimes I feel like I need a good stiff drink just to get me out of bed in the morning. You'll say I'm being melodramatic, but it's how I feel. At least with that old bitch gone there will be one less person to insult me every day of my life. Anyway, enough of my self pity. I promise to at least try and stay away from intoxicating substances. Promise. _

_Write again soon, Fiyero! _

_Yours,_

_Elphaba'_

* * *

Yes, that would suffice. Elphaba's handwriting was thin and jagged like herself, but there were uncharacteristic flourishes around Fiyero's name. She folded it neatly and slid it into the envelope, before moving onto Glinda.

'_Dear Glinda,_

_I think you rather suit 'Glinda' instead of 'Galinda'. It's more distinguished and sophisticated. How are the people back home dealing with it? Are they still calling you by your old name? I suppose it will be difficult for them to adjust, won't it? _

_I'm afraid I had a dire argument with your grandfather a few days ago, and we're not speaking now. To be blunt, I don't much care. I'm sorry, Glin, that sounds awful, but you understand where I'm coming from._

_Nor do I really care that my Aunt died. It serves the old bat right, in my opinion! But I know you don't want to hear such things, so I'll stop. _

_How are things with you? I heard that there was some huge ball in the Pertha Hills near where you live. Did you go? You probably did, and I'll wager you looked lovely too!'_

* * *

"Elphaba! Come on! It's time to go!" Melena called, rapping her knuckles on the table. Elphaba jumped and smudged the ink on her letter, creating an ugly blotch that covered a large part of the page. Her brow furrowed, and she turned her exasperated brown eyes upon her mother.

"Do I really need to go?" she sighed pleadingly. Melena's expression hardened.

"_Yes_, you do. I know practically everyone in the family hated Eissa, but we have to keep up appearances. You're coming with your father, Nessa, Shell and I." At those words, a chill ran down Elphaba's spine. She agreed to go to the funeral, but under one condition.

"What's that?" her mother asked, fixing her sombre black hat in the full length mirror.

"That you tell me the truth about my father." she stated, remembering Eissa's hurtful words.

Her mother stood rigid, shocked. Her eyes were wide with fear and her mind spun with the confession.

"Y-y-your father?"


	8. Chapter 7

**Sorry, this chapter is still a bit of a filler. I am _trying _to keep Elphaba in character here, but I think I have failed miserably. I do apologise. **

* * *

"Yes, my father. Something Eissa said made me wonder…She said that I was a product of your loneliness. She made it sound like Frex isn't my father." Elphaba whispered, her long hands trembling. Melena paled further, and shook her head frantically.

"Don't, Fabala. It was an _accident_-"

"An accident? Is that what I am? Is that what I've always been?" the girl yelped. Melena continued to shake her head, this time sadly.

"That's not what I meant, my darling. Frex was away…You know how his job often takes him preaching to far away places." she sighed, and her daughter nodded. Eissa's death had actually held them back from a trip to Quadling country, where her father was going to try and convert the people to the Unionist faith.

"I had been completely alone for almost a year, my love, you have to understand that! One day a little tinker passed by, and I offered him a place to rest and a meal. He gave me a drink out of a green glass bottle, and promised me that I would have rare expansive dreams. I did, but when I woke up, he was gone. Nine months later, you were born, just as green as the bottle. It wasn't until then that I realised that you might not be Frex's. He returned two days after the tinker left, but…the possibility was there, Fabala. I told Frex, and he just looked at you, and you looked at him, and he said that he didn't care if you weren't his by blood, because you were his in soul. He never blamed me."

The redhead fell silent, and Elphaba tried to take in the new information. She didn't know if she cared who her father was, but a flicker of hate ignited in her mind, because if it really was this tinker, it was his fault. His fault that she had been born so blighted. Him and his little green bottle.

* * *

A few minutes passed in silence, before Elphaba saw fit to speak. The sentence she uttered was not one that her mother had expected to hear.

"I think that I'm responsible for Eissa's death." she muttered, her mouth twitching into a malevolent smile. Melena stared. "It wasn't on purpose, don't even think that. She was being spiteful, and malicious, even though she could see that I was upset. She said that thing about my father…And I just stared at the gargoyle. I was trying to hold my temper, because I thought I might throttle her. I felt something flare up in my veins, and I realise now it was the magic. The magic that I try _so hard _to control. The gargoyle fell and…I must have been responsible. I'm sorry."

Wordlessly, Melena went and embraced her daughter. She knew that it was beyond her control. Any vastly strong emotion always induced the same powerful, magical reaction. It couldn't be helped. An equally nasty smile crossed Melena's features.

'_That will teach dear old Issy to meddle in things that don't concern her.' _she thought.

* * *

Two months later, Elphaba ambled into the stables, seeking her Vinkun stallion, Wit. The horse saw her approach and abandoned it's breakfast, greeting it's mistress with fond black eyes. The girl stroked his nose and fetched his brush, ready to groom him before she took him out for the day.

Going out wasn't something that she usually did, but the need to escape Rilt's penetrating gaze had become overwhelming, and the young woman decided that if she kept to the trails in the forest near her home, she would be safe. Wit tossed his head towards the wire brush, gazing at his mistress attentively, and she smiled.

"You're always there for me, aren't you?" she whispered, and the horse raised and dropped his head three times in quick succession, almost as though he was nodding at her. Once she tacked Wit up, Elphaba swung one leg over his back and the well matched pair exited the stables together, heading for the woods. Out of the corner of her dark eyes, the green girl could see her husband watching from the drawing room window, and although it was unlikely he could actually see her, she shuddered.

* * *

In temperament, Wit and Elphaba were surprisingly similar. They were both contained and understated, but in the right situation they could have a real fire in their blood that was matched by no-one. Elphaba never needed a riding hat or crop when riding Wit, because they were entirely in tune with one another, and just a slight tensing of her legs around his body could slow him down, and if she dipped her body forward slightly, he would naturally speed up.

It was unbearably hot that day, so she made sure to keep him in the shade of the trees, barely moving at more than a light canter. After an hour or so, Wit began to slow, and Elphaba understood at once. She dismounted and led him down into their favourite clearing in the forest, with a small pool in the middle where the horse could drink.

She herself settled on a nearby rock and pulled out a small collection of letters: Fiyero's letters. They were all neatly bundled up, and were tied in a cobalt blue ribbon. Elphaba slipped the most recent out from underneath the ribbon and read it for the umpteenth time, still smiling over the same parts as she had on her first reading. As time had passed, their letter writing had grown more fervent, and they were now exchanging letters two or three times a week, sent by the fastest messengers they could find.

* * *

It didn't escape her notice that their language was becoming more affectionate, and that they were both equally devoted to the correspondence. To Elphaba, the warm words of the young man were a life raft, holding her head above the water of despair. She had taken to drinking a half bottle of wine whenever she expected to be in Rilt's company, and Fiyero was quick to admonish her. He lavished her with attention, and all talk of other girls vanished. It was clear to her that he was almost too adoring to be proper at times, but the young woman returned his sentiments with equal vigour, and in her heart it bordered on worship.

Elphaba was hopelessly in love with him, despite the fact they had only met for a few days, almost three months before. She couldn't confide in anyone. Her mother was the new Eminent Thropp, and was still learning how to rule Munchkinland. Her father had been forced to go to the Quadling Country alone, and wasn't expected back for another few months. Nessarose, though almost sixteen, was too young and couldn't be trusted to hold her tongue. Her only real option was Glinda, and yet as Rilt was her grandfather, she too was out of the question.

And so the poor girl was forced into silence, confused, bewildered and blissful all at the same time. She felt that even though her life had ended with Rilt, there was a possibility of it beginning again with Fiyero, like a Pfenix rising from the ashes. For the first time in her life she prayed, and wished on stars, and all the things she had once dismissed as foolish nonsense. Elphaba could never actually admit that she 'loved' Fiyero; she believed it impossible for someone like her.

Yet she would find herself lying awake well into the night, planning things that they would do together. A month or so before, she would have thought no more of such irrational fancies, but they now came unbidden, and could not be forced into the locked drawer in her brilliant mind that she kept for dreams and wishes.

To everyone around her, she was becoming more and more withdrawn, and retreating further into herself. She used to enjoy books; but now she could almost always be found in the library reading, and stoutly refused to socialise. Her parents put it down to the obstinacy of youth, and didn't see that her cool demour hid the euphoria she felt.With a heavy sigh, Elphaba noticed that the sun was setting somewhere beyond the trees, distant in the West. The smile that flitted briefly across her face was radiant, and she tucked the letters back into her pocket, letting her fingers momentarily brush the soft parchment. Mounting Wit, she set off back to Colwen Grounds.

* * *

Melena was waiting for her when she arrived, clutching a vellum envelope with a heavy emerald seal. The older woman smiled at her daughter and broke the seal, removing a piece of familiar parchment. Her dark eyes danced across the page, before she set it on her desk and looked up.

"I _had _intended for you to spend this summer learning how to be Eminence, but I suppose that can wait. Pack your bags, darling. You and Rilt have been invited to spend a month with the Vinkun royal family. I wonder what brought this about? Highly unexpected!"

* * *

**Let the games begin. **


	9. Chapter 8

**Sorry, this chapter is a bit boring. I appear to have misplaced the inspiration that kept me writing for about forty-eight hours straight...Thanks to everyone who has reviewed that last few chapters, especially PhoenixBird777, who reviewed every single chapter of the last four stories I have written, all while feeling ill. Get well soon! :D**

**Review, if you like. And once again, sorry this one is rubbish. I'm trying to keep moving steadily, and properly develop relationships. How am I doing?**

* * *

Fiyero paced back and forth, running an impatient hand through his dark hair. The evening breeze cooled his warm cheeks and calmed his nerves almost enough to stop his stomach writhing with nerves. Clenching and unclenching his fists, he ran down the castle steps, hovered at the bottom, then turned and trotted back up them again. He was desperate for her to arrive, certain that he would go mad with anticipation.

He knew that he wouldn't get the reception that he wanted. Elphaba would not run into his arms and kiss him passionately, nor would there be any sweeping, romantic music playing. He knew that she would be as understated and quiet as she had been the first time they met; and the most he would get would be a handshake.

But Fiyero knew. He knew from the language she used in her letters that she felt the same excitement as he did. He could tell that she loved him, just from the way that she signed off at the bottom of each page. And for the first time, Fiyero was almost positive that he felt the same way. It frightened him slightly, but felt exhilarating at the same time.

The young man sighed gloomily and turned to re-enter the building. Just then, the unmistakable clatter of hooves alerted him to the approaching carriage, and he spun around so quickly that he felt dizzy. When the carriage stopped, he caught a glimpse of harlequin green. The world seemed to grind to a halt, and the next few moments lasted an eternity.

* * *

Elphaba took a glance at Rilt, who lay sleeping against the plush cushions. A small line of saliva trailed down his chin and into his fur coat, which he wore regardless of the fact that it was high summer. She herself refused to wear fur, just as she refused to eat meat. Anything that could only be gained by the death of an innocent was not acceptable in her book.

Instead, she was dressed in a simple black frock that reached just below her knees, with a pair of black boots. Too hot for the Vinkun summer, which could probably have melted the already drooping skin off of Rilt's waxen face, but it was all she felt comfortable in.

The carriage stopped and her heart immediately began to pound uncomfortably. The palms of her hands began to sweat, and she knew it had absolutely nothing to do with the heat. The footman opened the door, and blood thudded in her head.

She saw him.

When their eyes connected; cobalt and sillimanite, they smiled. Elphaba descended slowly from the carriage, clinging to the door handle to steady herself. The boy crossed the courtyard to meet her, while both young people arranged their features into less delighted expressions.

By the time the pair reached one another, Fiyero looked very surprised and Elphaba was glowering, both desperate to hide their glee at seeing one another. She bobbed a dainty curtsey and he waved his hands at her impatiently.

"You don't have to curtsey to _me, _Elphaba. We're friends." Fiyero smiled, raising her gently by a finger under her slightly pointed chin. The young woman kept her eyes downcast, afraid she might melt into a little green puddle on the ground if she dared glance up. She trembled slightly, and jerked her jaw away from his touch.

Elphaba immediately regretted the irrepressible flinch, as Fiyero's brow drooped forlornly. His large hand still hung in the air, and she gently took it within her own, squeezing his fingers before placing his hand back at his side.

"It's good to see you, Fiyero." she grinned. He smiled in return.

* * *

"In your last letter you said you'd always wanted to see the Vinkus, and it's most beautiful in summertime, because the sun only sets for a couple of hours and it turns the sky a sort of blue-ish violet. So, I figured I'd invite you for the best month of the summer, so that you could see the most striking sunsets in Oz." Fiyero explained as they walked back towards the castle, indicating the jets of indigo that shot through the orange and yellow sky.

"It really is gorgeous!" she smiled, craning her neck upwards. The sun looked so much bigger than home in Munchkinland, a huge amber disc hanging weightlessly in the evening sky.

"You think it's beautiful now, but just you wait another hour. The sky will be a thousand different colours…Like a rainbow!" the young man enthused, subconsciously taking her hand and glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. He noticed that her dark eyes were possibly even more melancholic than they had been when they had previously met, and he puzzled at the reason why.

"Are you sad? Because of your aunt?" he quizzed. Elphaba snapped to face him, before she threw her head back and laughed with great mirth.

"Sad? No! Why would I be sad? I'm _glad _the old witch is dead!" she cackled, the muscles in her stomach tightening with exertion.

"Then why are your eyes so sad?" he pressed. The young woman stopped mid laugh, and looked askance at him.

"What?"

"Your eyes. They're…heartbreaking. Beautiful, yes, but…I don't know. Forget I said anything."

"If _my _eyes are sad, then yours are too. Your expression is, well, _sorrowful_." Elphaba sighed, allowing her eyes to connect with his. It was then they she noticed their entwined hands, and she opened her mouth to speak again.

"Elphaba! Stupid girl! Why didn't you wake me?" Rilt screeched from the carriage, breaking the nervous silence. The pair jumped apart, and Elphaba abandoned Fiyero to help Rilt out of the carriage. The young man smoothed down his hair and cursed himself for putting his foot in it not half an hour after she arrived. _'Typical,_' he thought, _'One word from you and she's running for the hills.'_

* * *

At Rilt's request, the servants of the Tiggulars had prepared two separate rooms in the castle for the married couple. Biaxana led Elphaba to her room, and opened the door with a warm smile.

"I hope you'll feel at home with us, my dear." she beamed, her voice low, husky and homely.

"I feel more at home here already than I ever have at Colwen Grounds," Elphaba admitted, "All I need here now is my close family, and I could stay here forever. It's so _beautiful_!" She added, crossing to the window and gazing dreamily at the vista on display. As Fiyero had promised, the ruby sky was shot through with every colour imaginable; gold, lilac, cerise, azure, violet, indigo…

"Yes, it's beautiful, but it can be a very cruel place." Biaxana warned, standing beside the younger woman. Being a true Vinkun, she towered a head and shoulders above the Munchkin girl, who was actually tall for her race.

"Everything can be cruel. _Life _is cruel. I defy anyone to find something that is not inadvertently cruel in some way. Even love is cruel, in a painful, beautiful kind of way." the girl sighed, resting her elbows on the stone window ledge. The Queen caught the regretful, faraway look in her eyes, and immediately understood.

"You're not speaking of your husband, I presume?" Elphaba shook her head slowly, sadly.

"I was forced into that match, your majesty. And for all his years he looks to have a lot of life left in him, so it seems that I'm stuck until he dies. And by then it will be too late! He'll be gone!" she exclaimed softly, raw emotion and anger in her voice. Her long fingers stiffened in frustration, and she tossed the hair from her face, trying to settle herself.

"If the one you appear to love so passionately is the right one, my dear, fate will bring you together."

"But when-"

"Don't try to _rush _her, Elphaba. If your destiny is with this young man, whoever he may be, fate will guide you together. It may take twenty years, it might take twenty four hours. _Wait_, my girl. It will happen, I promise you." the Queen reassured, turning the girl to face her. With motherly compassion, she pressed a kiss to her forehead and left, leaving Elphaba to her own thoughts.

The girl smiled wryly. She suspected that if the Queen knew _who _it was that she was in love with, she would not be half as supportive.

* * *

**Mneh. Sorry, that REALLY sucked. **


	10. Chapter 9

**Cheese in this chapter, and the introduction to a whole new reason for Elphaba to hate Rilt.**

**Just read the darn thing. **

* * *

"Come on, I want to show you something!" Fiyero grinned, seizing Elphaba's verdant hand and yanking her out of the dining room. Neither had eaten much breakfast, and Rilt, Biaxana and Follor had wondered at their apparently non-existent appetites. They didn't pay much attention when the two young people left the room: let the children be children, as far as they were concerned. After all, they were only seventeen and nineteen. Barely grown up enough to tie their own shoelaces. The 'adults' finished their food with conversation about politics and the economy.

"Fiyero! Where are you taking me, you fool?" Elphaba chuckled, her boot-clad feet scuffing quickly along the hardwood floor.

"Somewhere I think you'll love," the young man replied, tugging her faster down the corridor. She submitted, following close behind.

* * *

Soon, they reached a slightly open door, and Fiyero turned to her, grinning.

"Close your eyes." he commanded, and Elphaba arched her eyebrow elegantly in confusion.

"This is going to be entirely above board, isn't it? I _am _a married woman." she sniggered, trying to settle the erratic beating of her heart before it got loud enough for her companion to hear. Fiyero shrugged suggestively, a teasing smile appearing on his chiselled features.

"Okay, if you won't close your eyes…" he sighed, stepping behind her and covering her face with his hands. He let his long thumbs graze her temples, and Elphaba barely managed to suppress a frission of excitement. Fiyero guided her forward, and she heard him kick the door lightly, opening it. They continued on, and then stopped in the middle of the room.

"Alright…Three, two, one…Open!" Fiyero cried, whipping his hands from her face. Elphaba took a moment to adjust to the light, and then gasped.

* * *

Books.

The biggest, highest, widest, brightest, most _beautiful _library Elphaba had ever set foot in.

Bookcases soared skyward, full to the brim with universes of knowledge. There were three balconies all looking out over the main atrium of the room. Each floor was a separate planet in itself, all to do with philosophy, politics, religion, nature, the arts, history, and even a section packed full of novels. There were spindly spiral staircases at the four corners of the room that lead to the upper floors, and there was a magnificent stone fireplace on one wall, surrounded by cosy looking chairs and sofas.

"Do you like it?" Fiyero chortled, his heart soaring higher than the ceiling when he saw how clearly enthralled Elphaba was. She turned to him, and he grinned broadly when he caught the change in her eyes. They were no longer shadowed and melancholy, but were now shining and sparkling with glee.

"Do I _like _it? Oz, Fiyero!" she cried jubilantly, throwing her arms out and spinning around on the spot like a child dancing in the snow. He laughed, and she shifted her awed gaze to his face. "I love it, Fiyero. I've never seen _anything _so _stunning_! How did you know…?"

"How could I _not _know, you mean. The last time I saw you, I'll swear you had a book in every pocket. And in your letters you were always telling me about some book or other that you had read and enjoyed. My parents aren't avid readers, and I only find interest in certain places in here…But I thought you could get some use out of it, while you're here." he explained.

"Can I…?" she queried, nodding her head towards the book lined walls. Fiyero waved his hands and Elphaba darted off so quickly he barely saw her move.

She danced along, uttering small exclamations of delight every time she saw a title that caught her fancy. He watched her intently, making a mental note of every sound and movement she made. He admired how sinuously she moved, marvelling at the way she would reach lithely for the top shelf then melt gracefully towards the floor, all the while expressing her delight by way of soft gasps and, once, a squeal.

Fiyero felt like there was an entire butterfly house inside his stomach, and he felt his pulse race and face heat up, before a shudder poured icy coolness down his shoulders. She fascinated him.

"You can have it, if you'd like." he ventured suddenly, and Elphaba snapped around, as though she had forgotten he was even in the room.

"I couldn't leave a gap in the shelf that way," she laughed, gesturing to a book he hadn't even realised she was holding. He shook his head.

"No, you misunderstand me. I mean you can have the _room_. Consider it a late wedding present." Fiyero smiled sardonically, as the green young woman's jaw dropped. "You can come here as often as you please, while you're here. And even after you're gone, I'll consider it your room. It's your room, from this moment on. It always _will be _your room. Come and visit it as often as you like," he added, and Elphaba noticed the double meaning in his words. Fiyero realised that he had inadvertently divulged his feelings without intending to, and the unreadable expression that crossed the girl's face showed him that she had understood.

Elphaba stepped away from the bookcase, laying the book she was carrying carefully on a table that had a vase of poppies on it. She crossed the room towards him, ending up barely a foot away from him. Without warning, she slid her arms around his waist and laid her cheek on his chest, sighing contentedly.

"Thank you," she mumbled, sniffing loudly. Fiyero smiled in reply and draped his arms easily around her shoulders, entertained by how small she suddenly seemed: he could feel her heartbeat somewhere around the bottom of his ribcage, and he realised his own was directly under her cheek. Their pulses beat steadily, and in time with each other. The perfect rhythm.

They remained so for a number of minutes, both perceiving the mutual closeness that had appeared since Fiyero's accidental revelation. Elphaba looked up at him, an almost shy smile appearing on her face.

"You're really beautiful, you know that?" she whispered. Her smile upended into a frown when Fiyero snorted, laughing lightly. "What?" the girl shrieked, jumping away. The boy's heart stuttered uncomfortably and he caught her around the waist, pulling her back to him.

"You don't realise that you've said that to me before, do you?" he smiled. Elphaba looked confused, an uncharacteristic expression on her. And, Fiyero noted with a thrill, it was incredibly adorable.

"When?"

"The morning after your wedding. I _think _you were still drunk, and I heard you throwing up from the hall, when I came to say goodbye." he explained. Elphaba shuddered in his arms, and her eyes darkened again.

"Oh. My wedding." she sighed. The memory of the night and following day were still blurry, but she remember Rilt's account of it.

The contrast between he and Fiyero heightened her detestation of her husband to a point she never thought possible, and just the thought of the old man turned her stomach.

"You're beautiful too, you know." Fiyero murmured, running his fingers along the smooth skin of her cheekbone. The girl tittered, shaking her head.

"No I'm not. Don't lie to me, _please_. My mother has done it all of my life. I'm not beautiful."

"Yes, you _are_! What do I have to do to prove it to you?"

"You can't." she muttered, standing on her tiptoes and closing the gap between them, trying to intimidate Fiyero with her expression. However, her shallow breathing made her far less daunting.

"I can try." he shrugged, clasping her face between his hands and capturing her thin, pretty lips with his own. Elphaba immediately responded, clasping her own hands at the back of his neck, revelling in the heat and urgency of his kiss. Their desperation for real affection was clear, and in one kiss they managed to fuse a deep connection that would last for a long time.

Moments later, they broke apart. Smiling bashfully, they conversed in low voices about something and nothing, both slightly alarmed by the suddenness and intensity of their feelings. After exchanging a few more tentative, chaste kisses, they parted properly, self-consciously adjusting their hair and clothes.

"Well…I'll…uh…I'll see you later?" Fiyero smiled hopefully, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. _'Ozdammit, that girl is beautiful!' _he thought. Elphaba nodded eagerly, and Fiyero exited.

* * *

Rilt entered the library during later afternoon, and squinted around the cavernous room. He'd never been one for reading, a fact that had seemed to irritate both his past wife and present wide to the utmost. A small distance from him, he saw a blur of harlequin curled up into a little ball in one of the chairs. The light of the Vinkus, he noticed with slight satisfaction, was rather more complimentary to Elphaba's skin tone than that of Munchkinland, and he found the hue almost appealing.

Fishing his glasses from the deep pocket of his smoking jacket, Rilt perched the wire frame on his nose. The vision in his left eye still blurred a little, but on the whole everything was clearer. Especially his little wife, who was smiling softly at the pages of her book.

"Elphaba!" he said, raising his voice a little louder that necessary, as he rather liked the sound of his own voice, you see. Her head snapped up and the smile actually stayed in place, much to his surprise.

"Hello, Rilt," Elphaba said politely, her tone less hostile than usual. When she was smiling like that, the old man realised how attractive she had the potential to be. Her skin was still ugly, though considerably less so than it had appeared on their wedding night.

He approached her slowly, as he was so apt to do, and perched on the settee opposite, gawping at her out of his good eye. Apparently being in a room with so many books had done much to brighten her mood, because instead of staring him down, Elphaba actually chuckled a little to herself and went back to the book. At such close range, with no alcohol to mar his already poor vision, Rilt observed how pliant and smooth her skin appeared, and reached out one gnarled hand to touch the velvety skin of her cheek.

As soon as his contorted digits connected with her face, Elphaba juddered away, apparently no longer comfortable.

"What do you think you're doing?" shrieked the girl, wrinkling her nose and frowning deeply.

"I'm your husband. I'm allowed to touch you." he argued, reaching further towards her.

"And I your _wife, _and I say that you are **not **allowed to touch me!" Her evasiveness only spurred him on, but he let it lie for the moment, as Elphaba whirled from the room, shaking.

"I'll get you my pretty…" he menaced under his breath, his clouded eyes darkening mercilessly.

* * *

**Oh yeah. I went there. **


	11. Chapter 10

**Mneh. Whatever. Yes, I used the nicknames. Shoot me. I tried to explain why, though.**

* * *

One week passed, and Rilt refrained from going near his wife. Whenever she saw him coming she would swerve violently and go back the way she had come, or would hurry past him with her head down, her dark hair hiding the face he was itching to touch. It wasn't that he _liked _her, no, that would be taking things a little too far. It was more like a strange mix of curiosity and perversity getting the better of him, and the fact that, even at his age, a man had desires. And when he had an exotic wife like Elphaba, those desires were easy to fulfil. If only she would let him close enough.

* * *

"What can I call you?" Fiyero sighed as he and Elphaba walked towards the stables, slightly closer together than was altogether proper.

"What you always call me, dear. You call me Elphaba." she smiled up at him, perplexed at his sudden fascination with nicknames. Her companion shook his head violently, allowing the dark hair to flop [rather attractively, in her opinion] into his bright eyes.

"But that's not fair. Your family call you Fabala, that Glinda girl calls you Elphie…And Rilt calls you Elphaba, and I'd rather not be in the same category as him, thank you very much." he frowned, spitting on the ground at the mention of the old man.

"Well…I don't know. It's got to be something entirely unrelated to my own name, because I'm entirely different person with you."

"What about…Fae? Yeah, I like that. Fae."

"How did you come up with that one?" she laughed, slipping easily into her new name.

"Well, you're name is really spelled with an 'A' at the start, right? After Saint Aelphaba? And your family call you Fabala, which is really pretty, so you take the 'F' from there, tack the 'ae' from the beginning of Aelphaba, and there you have it. Fae." he grinned at his own logic, and Elphaba grinned back in surprise and delight.

"If you want another way of thinking about it," she mused, "It's like an acronym of our names. 'Fiyero and Elphaba'. F, A, E. Fae." Elphaba laughed, mussing his hair affectionately.

"Either way, you're going to be called Fae from now on. What will you call me?" Fiyero asked eagerly, pausing outside the door of the stable. Elphaba thought for a moment, before beaming gratefully up at him.

"You've been my saviour, my hero, my rescuer. I like the 'Yero' part of your name, so if I say it with an 'ee' sound instead of an 'eh', I can call you 'Yero, my hero'. Yero for short." the young woman explained enthusiastically, and the young man blushed at the idea of being her 'redeemer'.

"Okay, then. Fae and Yero, Yero and Fae. In a resistance against the world."

"Resistance against my husband, resistance against my aunt, resistance against the damn **WIZARD, **for all I care!" Elphaba shouted brazenly, before Fiyero smothered her dangerous cries with his willing lips. She yielded immediately, happy to abandon her political views to pursue a more enjoyable activity such as this.

* * *

From the window of her chamber, Queen Biaxana regarded the events with calm surprise. She was too far away to hear what was being said, and until the young pair had thrown caution to the winds and embraced so publicly, she had suspected nothing more than a close friendship. But seeing the tenderness with which her only son caressed the girl made her heart glad, and she saw in them what she had always hoped he would find: real, simple love.

Many a time had she witnessed Fiyero with his most recent girlfriend, always pretty and polite, of course, but nothing more than a mere trinket to display on his arm when he went to fancy parties. She and Follor both saw through his well constructed façade, and noticed the kind hearted, conscientious young man he had the potential to be, if only he would let himself.

Biaxana beckoned to Follor, and the tall man stood proudly next to his wife.

"What is it, dearest?" he questioned. She motioned towards the stable yard and he let his eyes follow the path of her hands, before settling on the young couple. Elphaba was standing on tiptoe, and Fiyero brought his head down so that their foreheads pressed together and they were nose to nose, conversing about something that made them both smile. Fiyero threw his head up and laughed delightedly, while Elphaba buried her face into his chest, her body also shaking with laughter. She said something else and he visibly sighed deeply, planting an innocent, adoring kiss on the tip of her nose.

"Oh," the King exclaimed softly, a minute smile appearing on his broad face.

"It appears he has found his match at last, Foll," Biaxana sighed, the corners of her lips turning up in pleasure.

"Let us hope everything works out for the best," replied Follor, an image of Rilt appearing in his mind's eye.

* * *

On Fiyero's request, Elphaba had made sure that Wit was one of the horses that pulled the carriage to bring her to Kiamo Ko. As soon as he encountered Holtz, he had tossed his head and whinnied happily, and the pair had developed almost as close a relationship as their respective riders.

The young people looked somehow managed to look imposing and regal when they were mounted on their horses, and as they trotted down through the village they received a volley of awed glances from the townsfolk. Much to Elphaba's delight, none of them looked askance at her skin, but instead seemed more interested in her relationship with Fiyero.

Of course, out of respect for Fiyero's position, the people only gazed upon them with unguarded interest, rather than questioning them like they would have preferred to do.

"Is that the new princess, Mama? She's _green_!" one little girl asked loudly, tugging on her mother's starched apron. At the sound of the young voice, Fiyero turned his head and looked intently down at the child, who could barely be more that six years old. Her mother quailed in horror, snatching the girl against her skirts.

"My apologies, your highness. Partia didn't mean to speak out of turn, sir. She just don't know when to hold her tongue sometimes, y'see." the woman gabbled, frightened of Fiyero's calm, unwavering gaze.

Elphaba watched in silence, concerned. Fiyero wasn't a cruel prince, was he? Surely he wouldn't abuse his power and position just because of some unimportant words uttered by a child? The people in the market square hushed, and watched with wide, expectant eyes.

Much to Elphaba's relief, Fiyero smiled warmly and climbed down from the horse.

"Would you like it if this lady was the new princess?" he asked gently, bending down to look the little girl in the eyes. The girl smiled broadly at him.

"Yessir! I reckon she's real pretty." she enthused, causing Fiyero to laugh and ruffle her hair. Elphaba felt an unknown warmth in her chest as she watched the little scene. She wasn't sure whether it was because the child had been genuinely positive about her, or if it was because of Fiyero's apparent talent with children. She had a sneaking fear that it was due to the latter, but she shrugged the thought away. Children were _not _part of her future.

* * *

And yet, when she went to bed that night, the visions that she had only just managed to suppress somehow floated to the surface again, though slightly altered. The future she envisaged was more like the one Glinda had joked about the day she left Colwen Grounds. It was no longer simply herself and Fiyero living in a grand castle on their own, with Glinda and her family coming for occasional visits.

No.

Now, the unidentifiable castle had turned into the homely walls of Kiamo Ko, protecting it's inhabitants like a womb, where they could feel comfortable and safe. She could see the dining room bedecked with gold and green decorations for Lurlinemas, and saw everyone that was important to her crowded around the dark wooden table. Melena, Frex, Nessa, Shell, Biaxana, Follor, Glinda, Glinda's [as yet faceless and nameless] husband, Glinda's children. In her mind, they called her Auntie Elphie. Fiyero was seated across from herself, looking as perfect and flawless as ever.

And children. Four beautiful children, two with unmistakable cobalt eyes, and two with distinctive eyes of dark chocolate. Three girls with long black hair that looked like spun silk, and a boy with hair the same colour as Fiyero's own: a kind of dark bistre. She didn't dare go through her mind for names for them, as that would cause her to grow attached to something she would never have.

In all honesty, she still did not _want _children. To her, they were surplus to requirements, and noisy, and smelly, and never paid her one ounce of attention. The things she would have to go through in order to bear them didn't appeal much either, apart from the activities one had to perform in order to create the little monsters. A small amount of pleasure to create a child did not, in her book, make up for the huge amount of pain required to deliver it out into the world, screaming and crying.

The overt _happiness _of the little scene was preposterous to her analytical mind, and she wouldn't allow herself any real fondness towards these imagined children. Biting her lip, Elphaba realised that however much she may not want children, Fiyero possibly did, and if they ever managed to be together publicly, it would be something they had to discuss.

Yet, no matter how much she didn't _want _children, there was a part of her, buried deep in the soul she wasn't entirely certain she possessed, that _needed _them.

The little scene was actually desirable to her, as were the many others that flashed across her shrewd mind before she fell into a peaceful sleep, her arms wound tightly around the pillow like a lover.

* * *

Rilt rapped his knuckles smartly on the door, leaning on his walking stick for support. No answer came from within, so he simply opened the door without a second thought. His wife was folded against a pillow, her face nuzzled just inches from an open book. The candle on her bedside table flickered in the draught from the door, before stuttering out. It wasn't really necessary anyway, as the sun was beginning to rise again in a haze of amber and persimmon.

He approached the bed, reaching over to close the book. Elphaba sighed a little in her sleep, but didn't wake. With the back of his free hand, Rilt traced the elegant line of her jaw, amazed at the silky texture of her skin. With a malevolent smile, he lowered his face to hers, connecting their lips.

Elphaba immediately woke, punched his jaw with all of her might, and screamed.


	12. Chapter 11

**I am expecting _A LOT_ of happy reviews for this chapter, if you please. I'm not all that fond of it...But it's character development! Which is always good!...Right? **

* * *

Rilt reeled back, feeling his false teeth bite down on his tongue. The metallic taste of blood filled his mouth.

"You little _bitch_!" he bawled, lunging with surprising speed back towards Elphaba. She sprang out of his reach with astounding agility, her posture rigid and defensive, almost feline.

"Don't touch me," she warned quietly, her bare shoulders shaking in anger and repulsion. Rilt did not heed her, and advanced forward once more, making a blind grab for her. His hand closed around her ankle as she attempted to kick him away, and she screamed again, a high, shrill soprano in the top of her head that made his ears ring.

"Leave me!" bellowed the girl, flailing wildly. Her hostility spurred him on, and Rilt laughed horribly, throwing all of his weight on top of the girl in an attempt to stop her struggling.

And stop she did. He was dumbfounded at the way she suddenly turned to nothing underneath him, flopping lazily into the bed.

"Ah, so you've decided to give in?" he croaked, his breathing labouring from the energy he had exerted. Elphaba laughed humourlessly, her voice hollow.

"You know that I could kill you, right this second, and no-one would know?" she smiled pleasantly. Rilt raised an eyebrow. "And even if I don't, someone will have heard my screams anyway. Fiyero will be here at any moment."

"And he will be able to do _nothing_. It is my **right**-"

"You lost any rights you had when you agreed to this marriage. I'm of a higher social standing than you, and _you _took _my _name. You are _nothing _to me."

"But I am your husband! You have a duty!"

"Let me tell you a secret," Elphaba whispered against his ear, her hot breath tickling his neck. "I do not have a duty to you. I love Fiyero, and I cannot _wait _until you are dead so that he and I can be together properly."

"You slut! Have you been sleeping with him? Sleeping with him when you refuse me? Your own _husband_?"

"Who can say, my _dear?_" Elphaba spat, and a surge of power erupted from her stomach through her entire body, exiting through the very tips of her long fingers.

The last sight that Rilt saw was Elphaba's wide, crazed eyes as he was blasted to the other side of the room on a beam of powerful magic. She was a witch, and an impressive one at that.

Apparently, during marriage arrangements, Eissa had forgotten to mention that tiny fact.

* * *

Fiyero entered the room the second Rilt hit the opposite wall and fell to the floor in a crumpled heap. His head flicked back and forth between the figure on the floor and the figure on the bed. Elphaba was flat against the headboard, her nightdress hitched high on her thighs and her hands balled into claws as they clutched at the duvet. Her eyes were wide and afraid, and her breath came in quick gasps.

She turned her bewildered gaze upon the young man, her lips parted in horror. She was stiff with fright, and Fiyero hurried to her side.

"What in the name of Kumbricia _happened_, Fae?" he quizzed, prizing her unyielding fingers from the covers. She shook her head rapidly.

"I-I didn't think that…" she stuttered. "The…the _magic_, it-it just…exploded…I couldn't control it. I only meant t-to scare him…" Fiyero clutched her hands in his, trying to make sense of her jumbled sentences.

"Magic, Fae? What magic? You couldn't have done that! He's _dead_!" he reassured her, pressing a soothing kiss on her forehead. At that word, Elphaba visibly flinched. She rose gingerly to her feet and crossed the room to where Rilt lay like a crumpled piece of paper. She nudged him with her bare foot and he slid sideways, his eyes staring, and now entirely sightless.

"Oh God," she shrieked. "He's dead! I killed him!"

* * *

The King and Queen had Rilt laid in a spare bedroom, under the assumption that he had simply had a heart attack and keeled over. They did not let on to the young pair that they had seen their kiss by the stables, and instructed Fiyero to take Elphaba down to the kitchens and get her something calming to drink.

* * *

"I had no idea you were so proficient in the kitchen," Elphaba laughed shakily, taking the cup of hot cocoa from Fiyero's hands.

"Full of surprises, me." he replied dryly, watching her take a tentative sip. The young woman immediately sensed his annoyance, and set the mug down on the table.

"What?"

"You said _magic_. You said that the _magic _had killed him. And then you said that _you _killed him. Forgive me for reverting to type and seeming a bit dense, but I'm afraid I don't get it." he shot, infuriated at his own stupidity rather than Elphaba. She saw this, and motioned for him to draw up a seat next to her.

"_Magic _and I are the same thing, Yero. Something has given me power, whether it be the same anomaly in my DNA as caused this skin, or the fact that my mother isn't sure who my father is. Don't look at me like that! I'm trying to tell you the truth!" she exclaimed, massaging her temples in irritation. Fiyero rearranged his features into a more agreeable expression, and his companion continued.

She explained the mystery of her birth, the little green bottle, her mother's failure to remember. She told him that the tinker could have been anyone, but Melena had always suspected that he was a magician of some sort, and had passed his magic on to her, as well as colouring her visage with the green elixir.

"Of course, Frex could be my father just as easily as the other man. Apparently I shirked my obligations right from birth; I never cried or anything, I just stared up at them. It's perfectly possible that there's a mutation in my DNA that causes my verdegris. But…I don't know what gave me this power. I just wish that I could control it."

"What made you go mental and blast Rilt across the room, anyway? For future reference, that's all!" Fiyero added with a grin, ignoring Elphaba's dark glare.

"He was trying to claim his 'rights' as a husband." she spat, raking her nails up her arms like she used to when a child and something made her angry. "He wouldn't be told. I don't _understand_. He told me how repulsive he found me, and suddenly he wanted to…" Elphaba shuddered, and clasped her hands around the mug of cocoa, as though trying to extract comfort from the warm liquid.

Fiyero drew closer, so that they were almost nose to nose. She avoided his eyes, looking anywhere but at him.

"Listen, my Elphaba. You are _not _repulsive. Who cares what an old twit like him thinks anyway?"

"_I _care! I don't even know _why _I care. I've never wanted to be all pink and white and tan like everyone else. I like that I'm unique, believe it or not. It's just…when there are only four people in the entire world who don't look at you like you have contagious disease, and don't call you names, and don't cross the street when they see you coming, you start to wonder if individuality is such a good thing after all. When Glinda became my friend, I became more comfortable with myself again. When I met _you_, I thought that I didn't care what anyone thought of me anymore. Let them say what they like, it would go over my head." Here Elphaba paused for breath, and Fiyero realised that he had been holding his in anticipation. She was finally pouring her heart out to him, like he had hoped she someday would.

"But I'm so used to the good things in my life disappearing. All too soon, Glinda had to go back to the Pertha hills, and I was left without a contemporary that I could turn to. Shell was sent away to begin boarding school, so I was deprived of my little brother. Nessa grew out of my company and got friends of her own. Papa went away to try and help the Quadlings. Aunt Eissa died, meaning Mother had to devote all of her time to ruling Munchkinland."

"And then there was you. You frustrating, sweet, funny, stubborn, _wonderful _man, and the minute I meet you I'm bundled off to get married to a man I absolutely abhor. For a moment, when he was telling me about his life as a younger man, a thought flickered across my mind. _'I could be his friend!' _I thought. And then he told me how nauseating I was. I knew then that I hated him. The perversity he displayed over the last few weeks deepened that hate to something I never knew I could feel. There isn't even a word for it."

"And now you know about my magic, and that I killed man…by accident. You should also know that I might have accidentally dropped a gargoyle on my aunt, but that wasn't my fault either." She finished wryly, looking expectantly at him from underneath her long sooty lashes.

"If you're waiting for me to scream and run away, it's not going to happen." Fiyero smiled softly, raising her chin so that he could look her in the eyes. Elphaba laughed wretchedly,

"Don't worry, it will come."

"I don't think so," he chuckled, kissing the corner of her mouth teasingly, like he had the very first time in the garden at Colwen Grounds.

* * *

That night, Elphaba and Fiyero slept in the library, as that was where the green girl was most at her ease. He himself barely closed his eyes for hours, so enamoured was he with watching her. She held him close, and he stroked her raven hair.

As the light of dawn touched Kiamo Ko, the Crown Prince of the Vinkus finally fell asleep, murmuring something about not enough dancing and too many books.

* * *

**Really lame ending to this chapter. I sat up until 2am finishing it, and my brain was refusing to function. Sorry. :)**


	13. Chapter 12

**To quote Dorothy Gale in the novel 'Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West'..."Oh, will this nightmare never _end_!" [or something to that effect]. That's what I feel like with this story at the moment, because there are still a few places I want to take it...But I've run out of villains, and I'm afraid of dragging it on too long. What do you think? Round it up soon, or keep it going? I only have two weeks of summer holiday left, so...Yeah. :) I don't know what I was thinking when I wrote this one. It just...happened!**

**Review? :D **

* * *

"When can we tell them?" Fiyero whined, pulling random books from their places on the shelves. Elphaba didn't turn.

"Tell who what?" she replied distantly, admiring the little vase of poppies that stood on the table by her right hand. Fiyero groaned impatiently.

"Tell _everyone _that we're together!" cried the young man, wrapping his long arms around Elphaba's enviably slim waist from behind. She laughed dryly.

"Yero, Rilt died _three days ago_. Glinda's parents haven't even arrived to escort his body home yet. I'm supposed to be in mourning. Think what people would say about me!"

"But-" Elphaba turned in Fiyero's arms and pressed one long finger to his lips. He frowned, like a child who had just been scolded.

"We have to keep our secret for a bit longer, darling. Quite a while longer, I should imagine." she smiled gently, and her companion kissed the tip of her finger before drawing his face away.

"But I don't want to wait! I want to tell everyone how much I love you! I want to be able to kiss you in public, I want to be able to hold your hand, and I want to be with you at night and I want to _marry _you and I want you to have my children-" Fiyero pleaded, until Elphaba's eyebrows shot up.

"Slow down, Yero!" she gasped, feeling her face flushing. She turned away, unsure of how to react.

The young man bit his lip in worry, realising he may have jumped the gun a little. As had become the norm when he was with Elphaba, he forgot to hold in his feelings, and he simply let everything out.

"I'm sorry, Fae…I didn't mean to put pressure on you." he murmured apologetically, taking her in his arms again. Elphaba looked up at him, a tight smile appearing on her features.

She stared at him for a moment, then spoke, "Did you really mean all of that?"

"Of course I meant it, silly." Fiyero replied, venturing a tiny smile. The girl tapped her fingers on his shoulders, swaying back and forth to a rhythm in her head. She furrowed her brow, evidently deep in thought. The young man suddenly had the irrational fear that she was going to tell him where to go, so intense was her expression. There was a slightly pained look about the creases around her mouth, and yet a new softness to her eyes.

* * *

Elphaba stayed quiet for a good few minutes, overseeing the battle between her head and her heart. In all honesty, she had thrilled to hear Fiyero say everything that she would have once deemed 'sentimental nonsense', but a part of her suddenly felt like she had been thrown into deep water without warning, and the current was pulling her under.

That was what her head was thinking, anyway.

Her heart, on the other hand, knew she felt the exact same way, even though to hear it verbalised was daunting. Thanks to some strange turn of events, she even felt the same about the children…One day, at least.

* * *

Fiyero's heartbeat quickened as he waited, truly afraid that she was going to bolt away from him. But she didn't.

"You know something?" she said, the softness in her dark eyes almost completely easing his fear.

"What?" His voice was hoarse, nervous.

"You're possibly the most over-sentimental fool I have ever met," she laughed, "And I think that I feel the same way that you do. About everything. I love you." He kissed her then, pushing her back against the shelves of the bookcase.

* * *

Elphaba quickly noticed that Fiyero had never kissed her like that before…There was something almost carnal in the way his lips caressed hers, and she was rather enjoying it.

"You've been holding out on me…" she sniggered, pulling back and resting her head on a shelf filled with books on plant life. Fiyero offered no reply other than a low grunt in the back of his throat, before bringing his mouth forcefully back upon hers.

Elphaba melted against him, her frame moulding effortlessly against his. She reached out her hand towards the table and slid onto it, sending the vase of poppies crashing to the floor. Neither of them took any notice, and Fiyero was glad that Elphaba had shifted her position. Stooping down all the time was a little difficult, and with an extra few inches thanks to the table, the activity was much easier to pursue.

Their actions became more vigorous, and they let their hands roam for the first time. So taken up were the young couple in their lusty explorations, neither of them heard the door creak open.

* * *

"You couldn't even wait until he was in his _grave!" _Glinda shrieked in horror, her emerald eyes wide at the sight before her. Elphaba's head spun at the familiar voice, and Fiyero's hands dropped abruptly from their station at her hips. The blonde let angry tears flow unhindered down her aristocratically pale cheeks while advancing towards her friend.

"Glinda! What in the name of Oz are you doing here?" Elphaba stuttered, her eyes wide and her hair bedraggled.

"What am I doing here? What am I _doing here_? I'm here with my parents to collect the body of my grandfather: your **husband**, who died three days ago!" she shrilled, balling her hands into fists. "The King said you might be up here, because it was your favourite room in the castle, and Fiyero had given it to you as a way to 'cement your friendship'. Friendship my big toe! How long has this been going _on_? Were you doing this before the wedding? I wouldn't put it past you. I should have know that you were nothing more than a sly little-"

"Miss Glinda, do you mind if I-" Fiyero tried to cut in, but Glinda silenced him, her face now glowing crimson with rage.

"Oh yeah, _Tiggy_, I mind!" she snapped, flapping her hands at him to shut him up. "I thought you were my friend! I felt _sorry _for you! Couldn't you even have waited a month? A _week_?" Glinda dissolved further into distraught sobs, hugging herself for comfort.

Elphaba struggled to remain silent, but knew any protests she could make would be useless. In an attempt to comfort her friend, she reached out a hand and laid it on Glinda's arm. The blonde stiffened, then shook her off.

"I don't want your comfort!" she croaked quietly, turning on her heel and marching purposefully from the room.

Fiyero felt his heart drop. "She's going to tell, isn't she?"

* * *

**Whoooops. How did Glinda get there? **

**Hehehehe. **


	14. Chapter 13

I have nothing to say on this chapter, other than I quiet like it. Sorry :) Review?

* * *

Dinner that night was a silent affair, the tense atmosphere uncomfortable for everyone around the table. The click of knives and forks were the only thing to break the dense silence, and Fiyero and Elphaba were on tenterhooks the entire time. Every time Glinda opened her mouth to take a deep breath, they both looked as though they were staring down the barrel of a musket and were about to be shot, so terrified were their expressions.

Elphaba could barely swallow a mouthful, she was so on edge with watching Glinda. The blonde in question ate calmly, savouring the peas like the greatest delicacy she had ever tasted. Fiyero twisted his napkin in his lap between courses, barely ever taking his eyes from Elphaba. Biaxana immediately understood the situation, but it did not register in Follor's brain, and he kept himself content by enjoying the cold cucumber soup, roasted potatoes, mixed vegetables, corn on the cob, leg of lamb, cheese soufflé, apple tart and rhubarb crumble. Tush and Velita, Glinda's parents, were too absorbed in their grief to notice the stony hush that rested over the table.

"I trust that you will be accompanying us back for the funeral, Elphie?" Glinda said suddenly, skewering a pea on the end of her fork with some real wicked intent. Elphaba blanched.

"Of course," she murmured plaintively, her dark eyes turning to the blonde. Glinda could not hold her pleading gaze, and with a toss of her curls she looked contemptuously at Fiyero, clearly wishing that it was his head she was puncturing, rather than vegetables that would not bleed slowly and painfully to death.

Biaxana spoke next, her matronly air soothing the young people slightly. "Elphaba, you are welcome to return here for the final few days of the summer, if you wish," she smiled, and the young woman's eyes widened hopefully.

"Oh, really? That would be-" Elphaba caught Glinda's disgusted glance. "That would be entirely inappropriate, your majesty." she sighed, "I shall go home, where I can…_mourn_, without disturbing anyone. My husband meant a great deal to me."

Glinda evidently appreciated this lie, as her green eyes softened infinitesimally. Fiyero, on the other hand, looked crestfallen, and he threw his well abused napkin down.

"Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen. I feel a little ill," he muttered, standing up and letting his long legs carry him quickly from the room. Elphaba looked after him, confused.

* * *

When dinner was _finally _over, and Glinda had gone for a short walk with her parents before departing, Elphaba snuck towards the wing of the castle where she knew Fiyero's bedchamber was. After knocking three times and receiving no reply, the girl pushed the door gently open and slid inside.

Fiyero was reclined on his bed, staring meditatively at the whitewashed ceiling. His shirt hung over the chaise near the window, and Elphaba saw for the first time that he had tattoos in the shape of diamonds. They were beautiful, swirling hypnotically around his chest and down towards, around and beyond his navel, in the most beautiful azure blue. A part of her wondered where the intricate patterns continued to, but she shook the thought away.

The young man ignored her as she crept closer to the bed, and even when she perched on the edge, her eyes repentant even though she had no clue what she had done to upset him. An uncomfortable minute passed, and Fiyero never relaxed his posture.

"Oh, heart, what's wrong?" Elphaba cried suddenly, perplexed. Fiyero still did not look at her, but a disgusted sound issued from the back of his throat.

"You're asking me what's _wrong_…" he whispered, allowing himself a humourless laugh. "What's wrong, Fae, is that you are walking on eggshells and making me feel like dirty little secret that you can't tell anyone, just to protect your own, _already flawed_, reputation! And to play to the whims of that stupid little blonde girl who doesn't seem to realise that your marriage to her grandfather was just a contract, and that you felt **nothing **for him! I thought you didn't give a flying…_monkey _what other people thought of you. Apparently, I was wrong." Fiyero said, losing his composure and sitting bolt upright, gesturing wildly.

Elphaba could see that he was hurt; she realised the way it must look to him. Contrary to what he though, she was not ashamed to be with him…But he was right about her worry for her reputation.

"You said yourself, Yero, my reputation is already flawed. I don't need it to get any worse!"

"Oh, so I suppose that being with me will automatically brand you as a brainless slut who is just out to advance herself up the social ladder?" Here he stood and crossed to the window. In truth, he couldn't look at her for fear of seeing the dreaded pain return to Elphaba's eyes.

"But Fiyero-"

"No! I _love _you, Elphaba, and I don't care one way or the other what people say about me. Yes, I have a less that desirable reputation, but you brought me out the other side of that! I _love _you and I would happily fight tooth and nail to defend my love for you. But it would appear that you don't feel the same way about me." Elphaba crossed to him and tried to wrap her arms around his waist, but he unhooked them and pushed her gently away.

"Yero, _please_…" she gasped, unable to believe what was going on.

"Go and bury your husband, Fae. I love you, and I always will. But I don't want to see you again until you can admit to others how you feel, without being ashamed of it." Fiyero murmured, kissing her forehead then propelling her quickly from the room, locking the deadbolt behind her. He slid down the cold stone wall, his head in his hands.

Elphaba climbed into the carriage behind Glinda, pressing her lips together so as to avoid making a scene. Fiyero had not come down to wave her off, and her mournful eyes were wide with unexpressed anger, hurt and confusion.

Tush and Velita put her silence down to grief for her deceased husband, but Glinda saw the lone tear that rolled down the emerald cheek when she thought no-one was looking. The blonde realised that something bad must have happened between her best friend [a little short lived anger at Elphaba would never change that] and the Prince. Elphaba was obviously heartbroken.

And for the first time in her life, little Glinda Upland realised that she had been incredibly selfish. Of course the green girl had never loved her grandfather, and it had been wrong to separate her from the man she evidently _did _love just to ease her own wounded feelings.

When another silent tear issued from fierce, passionate Elphaba, the girl who seemed to be made not of blood and bone but of iron and whiskey, Glinda Upland felt _guilty_.


	15. Chapter 14

**I'm not satisfied with the latter part of this chapter...But it will have to do. Just in-between-ness...[whut? I don't know either]. Review? :) **

* * *

Six months of emptiness, watching the leaves slowly transform from lush summer green to a delicate autumn amber and fall gracefully to the ground, then the first fall of winter snow coating the ground in a blinding white carpet. The refined beauty was entirely lost on Elphaba, and not even Glinda's encouraging, repentant letters could ease her anguish.

Fiyero didn't write.

Elphaba did, but out of the countless letters she penned to him, not a single one was ever sent. She returned to the bottom of the bottle that she had taken refuge in during her marriage to Rilt, and started chewing Pinlobble leaves when she simply wanted to float away from her life and the alcohol wasn't proving effective enough.

Melena and Frex worried about their daughter, but she refused to talk to them. Nothing could lift the girl from her misery, nothing but Fiyero. And he never came.

* * *

Fiyero returned to default, living on his reputation. He partied every other night, and brought home girls. He never knew their names, and more often than not, he couldn't even remember their face five minutes after they left in the morning. They were all blonde, with blue eyes, he knew that much.

Elphaba didn't write.

He wrote innumerable letters to her, each one of them apologising for his rash behaviour. But not one of them was ever sent; he didn't have the courage to admit that he had been wrong.

Biaxana and Follor worried about their son, but he refused to talk to them. Nothing could lift the boy from his misery, nothing but Elphaba. And she never came.

* * *

Elphaba took another swig from the bottle of sharp tasting liquid, savouring the searing heat as it made it's fiery way down her throat. The Pinlobble leaves had turned to an unpleasant mush in her mouth, and she spat them unceremoniously into the little bin at her bedside. She lay spread-eagled under the duvet, and only her raven head and one skeletal arm clutching the bottle could be seen. Her once silken hair had become matted: she hadn't washed it for days.

She thought about Fiyero, and the hurt in his eyes the last time she had seen him. Another drink was required for this memory, and it made her head spin. Her depressed musings were interrupted by Nessarose, who quietly opened the door.

"Fabala?" the girl whispered, afraid to raise her voice in case it upset her sister. Elphaba grumbled in acknowledgement, but made no attempt at welcoming her sister. The sixteen year old persevered. "I brought you some cake, Fabala. Cooky made it especially for your b-"

"Don't!" Elphaba snapped, turning her steely gaze upon her younger sister. Nessarose refused to be cowed. She slammed the tray onto Elphaba's bedside cabinet, hurt blazing in her eyes.

A horribly familiar, agonising expression.

The green girl turned from her, and Nessarose screamed stridently in exasperation.

"What is _wrong _with you, Elphaba?" she shrieked, throwing herself onto the bed beside her sister and laying one lily white hand on the emerald shoulder. Elphaba squirmed out of her reach.

"Nothing's wrong with me, Nessie. Whatever gave you that idea?" she replied, a false, almost mocking cheeriness in her voice.

"The fact that you haven't left the room for weeks might be a little hint towards something being wrong. I'm sixteen, Fabala, you can talk to me." Nessarose pleaded.

"You're still too young! You wouldn't understand!"

"But-"

"Just leave me alone, Nessa." the young woman sighed, pulling the duvet up over her head, being careful to take her bottle under with her. A few moments later she heard Nessarose crossing the room and closing the door just as delicately as she had opened it.

Minutes passed before Elphaba dared to peek out from her cocoon, crawling towards the little plate of cake. She looked sadly at it for a moment, before taking a nibble with her un-brushed teeth. It was sweet, and she savoured the pleasant flavour as it filled her mouth, erasing the taste of the alcohol.

"Happy birthday to me…" she sang dismally, sticking one wasted finger into the chocolate sponge, contemplating.

Eighteen years old, and she had already had enough.

* * *

Fiyero stood in the ballroom of another nameless stately home, a glass of something he didn't want to think about clutched in his right hand. He frowned and knocked it back, watching as two small, plump blonde girls approached him. _'Are they twins?' _he wondered as the two sashayed towards him in perfect step.

Then he realised. They weren't twins. They were one girl, and he was so drunk he was seeing double.

"Shit…." he muttered violently, rubbing his eyes and staggering back a few steps. The blonde girl caught him with an amused smile.

"Watch yerself, yer hi'ness, " she giggled, her strong Munchkin accent reminding him of the servants at the Thropp household. Fiyero smiled widely then staggered again. His stomach heaved, and he vomited all over the parquet floor.

"Heh…Sorry," he laughed apologetically, trying valiantly to exit the room. All of the nobility around him eyed him with disgust, incredulous that _this _boy was a future king.

When the cold hair hit Fiyero, he breathed it in deeply, almost ravenously, attempting to clear his head. He realised with a jolt that this most recent party was taking place in Munchkinland, in Nest Hardings. Taking another deep breath, he thought about Colwen Grounds, probably no more than two miles from where he stood.

Steeling his nerves, the young prince made his unsteady way in the direction he thought it ought to be in. What he was intending on _doing _once he got there wasn't clear.

But he was going to go anyway.

* * *

**: ) Not my best. Deal with it, my pretties. x**


	16. Chapter 15

**Sorry I haven't updated for a few days; I was waiting for my Higher exam results. Highers are the Scottish equivilent of A levels and...whatever exams you take between the ages of 17-18 in other parts of the world. I passed them all! I got As in Music, English and Drama, and I got a B in Dance. Epically proud of myself!**

**And in regard to this chapter...Sorry if it seems things are moving too fast. I simply cannot bear to keep the dream couple apart for more than a chapter or two. **

**Sorry about any errors in this chapter, by the way! **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed! **

* * *

Elphaba leaned lazily on the wrought iron balcony, feeling goosebumps rise on her bare arms. The night was bitter and the sky was clear, bathing the gravel driveway in pale moonlight. She liked the night; she always felt a little better when the darkness came. It meant that another day was over, twenty four hours that she no longer had to worry about.

Out of the corner of her eye, Elphaba saw something move. Her analytical mind, though somewhat dulled by liberal amounts of intoxicating substances, immediately dismissed it as a fox or a cat or some other harmless little animal. She sighed and wound the strand of cobalt ribbon around her finger, the letters it had once bound now lying at the bottom of a drawer somewhere. She had often contemplated throwing both the letters and the ribbon away, but she never did.

The shadow to her right moved again, and this time the young woman looked towards it. It was unmistakably human, though it staggered from left to right, occasionally stopping gaze around. To her rational brain, the build was male: slim, but muscular. Far too tall to be from Munchkinland, not thickset enough to be Quadling. The moonlight caught the man's hair, and it illuminated a rich, dark brown. Gillikinese people were mostly blonde.

Elphaba's stomach lurched uncomfortably as the figure crept closer, and she took in his obviously impressive height. He was Vinkun. The girl crossed the balcony to look down at him, and the man stopped, raising his face to stare back at her. A cry of disbelief briefly escaped her lips when her eyes took in the beautifully familiar features.

"Yero?" she whispered, bending down and gazing through the bars for a closer look. The young man grinned at the nickname, a thrill of happiness coursing down his spine.

"Hello, Fae,"

* * *

"What are you _doing _here?" Elphaba hissed, fighting the urge to leap over the balcony and into his arms, just to touch him. To make sure he was real, and she wasn't just experiencing another cruel dream.

"Um…I _think _I've just come from a party over at…eh…over…there…" Fiyero replied lamely, gesturing vaguely in the direction opposite the one from which he had approached. "Will you come down?" he added, clasping his hands pleadingly. Fiyero had temporarily forgotten that he was supposed to be angry with the girl, and grinned like an fool when she nodded and hurried indoors.

As soon as Elphaba closed the front door quietly behind her, Fiyero felt apprehensive. She approached him and stood about a foot away, shuffling self consciously from foot to foot.

"What time is it?" Fiyero asked gruffly to break the silence, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Just after three," Elphaba replied quietly, amazed at how alive her senses seemed to be; like his very presence was like oxygen, breathing life into her.

The young man sighed. "Oh…" They lapsed into an uncomfortable silence, unsaid things looming over their heads.

"How have you been?" Elphaba queried quietly, cursing Lurline that she hadn't thought to bring a jacket. Fiyero saw her shivering violently, and acted on instinct, closing the small gap between them to wrap his long arms around her waist. She stiffened, then relented, sinking into the welcoming warmth of his body.

"I missed you," whispered Fiyero.

Elphaba laughed coolly. "Obviously not enough to write to me," The young woman immediately regretted the jibe, and saw the hypocrisy of her words when Fiyero pulled away angrily, leaving the cold air to engulf her once more. Even in the faint light of the moon, she could see his brow furrowed incredulously.

"You _left _me!" he cried, his smooth tenor voice echoing around the nearby trees.

"You physically forced me to leave! You bolted your door on me and told me that you didn't want to see me again!" Elphaba alleged quietly, clamping her hand over Fiyero's mouth to stop him waking up the whole house.

After a few moments to calm his anger, Fiyero laid a gentle, repentant kiss on her smooth palm. Elphaba withdrew her hand, clenching her fist as though to keep the feeling of his lips there for as long as possible.

Fiyero spoke quietly, gently, apologetically. "I'm sorry for doing that to you, Fae."

"No, Yero, _I'm _sorry. I shouldn't have been afraid to admit to my family how I feel about you."

"No, Elphaba, _I'm _sorry! I realised as soon as you were gone what things would have been like for you if you had been seen to get together with someone so soon after Rilt's death…"

"No, Yero-"

"This is ridiculous!" Fiyero laughed, cutting off Elphaba's next apology with a sudden kiss. Thus, the young couple reconciled.

* * *

"That party you ditched to come and see me…What was it for?" Elphaba questioned, dunking her sandwich cookie into the glass of milk on the table. Fiyero took a meditative bite of his own cookie, scrunching his eyes up in an attempt to remember.

"You know, I have no idea. I think it was a birthday party for someone." he muttered with a shrug, pulling the cookie apart and licking the creamy bit in the middle with a ponderous air.

"I think it was _my _birthday party…" Elphaba chuckled, brushing crumbs from her violet nightgown. Fiyero started and turned his bright eyes upon the green girl. He had to work to keep his voice low: the kitchen of the Thropp household was directly underneath Melena and Frex's bedroom, and neither of the young pair wanted to be disturbed.

"It's your birthday?"

"It was, yesterday. Mother and father threw a party for me, but I refused to go."

"Why?" the boy asked, reaching across the table and linking his fingers through Elphaba's.

She shrugged. "Didn't feel like it. I haven't felt like doing much recently. By recently I mean the last six months."

"I know what you mean. I'm ashamed to say that I've lapsed into my old ways. I think this is the clearest my mind has been since the night after I saw you last." Fiyero admitted bashfully, and Elphaba nodded sympathetically.

* * *

"Happy birthday for yesterday, by the way!" he grinned, leaning across the table and pressing a tender kiss to her willing lips. She smiled, thrilling at how easily they had lapsed back into being comfortable with each other. It seemed that she could not function properly without him, and that Fiyero could not operate adequately without her.

When Fiyero went to pull away, Elphaba stopped him by sliding her slender arms around his neck and capturing his lips with hers, trying desperately to believe that he was really there. He yielded easily, pulling the small girl into his lap and allowing a strident moan to escape him. Her arms tightened around him, and they picked up where they had left off six months before in the library.

And, once again, they were interrupted. Heavy footsteps from above filtered into Elphaba's consciousness, and she pushed Fiyero gently away.

"But Fae-" he complained loudly, his tone heavy with desire.

"Shush, Yero! It's my father!" the young woman muttered urgently, clambering from his embrace and tugging him with comical speed towards the back door.

"When will I see you again?" Fiyero quizzed, allowing his mouth to graze the tender skin of her neck, like a parting gift she was all too willing to accept.

"I don't know. Write to me, and I'll let you know," she replied softly, allowing her eyes to close briefly before snapping back to her senses, her father's footsteps advancing further towards the kitchen. Fiyero made to dart out of the back door, but skidded back for a final kiss and a few parting words.

"This is too uncertain, my Fae," he whispered. "I need to know that we'll be together, at least some day, and the only way I can know that for sure is…" he trailed off, biting his lip and searching her face uncertainly.

"_What, _Yero?" Elphaba hissed, shoving him unceremoniously from the house. His cobalt eyes found her sillimanite ones, and he smiled like a little boy asking for something impossible and wonderful.

"The only ways I can know for sure is if you marry me."

* * *

**Hehe. Wonder how _this _one will pan out. -cackle-**


	17. Chapter 16

**Sorry about any OOC-ness in this chapter. I'm trying! A few more chapters, I think, and then we shall draw the curtain on this little melodrama. Thank you for all of the reviews! :D **

**And by the way, I just located a slight plot hole from a few chapters ago, and I have just created another one, though yes, it's tiny. How did Wit [Elphaba's horse] get back from the Vinkus? No idea. How did Fiyero get the little book into Elphaba's room? No idea, but I'm going to say that he bribed a maid to take it up. Sorry, I hate that. **

* * *

To say that Elphaba was shocked would have been an understatement. She stood with her hands rested on Fiyero's shoulders, struck dumb in the middle of the act of propelling him from her house. Her mouth opened and closed several times, and eventually she settled on gawping at him in confusion and astonishment. Fiyero gazed back at her intently, watching conflicting expressions flit across her face in quick succession.

Confusion.

Adoration.

Amusement.

Cynicism.

Tenderness.

Frex's footsteps began to slowly shuffle down the little corridor towards the kitchen, and Fiyero gripped Elphaba's emerald hands imploringly. She shook herself out of her reverie, and pretended to heave a defeated little sigh.

"All right then, I'll marry you," she smiled crookedly, cleverly disguising the mixture of fear and rapture that now stirred in her long dormant heart. Fiyero beamed idiotically, gathering her into his arms and planting a soft, meaningful kiss on her lips. Elphaba laughed fondly and pushed him away. "Now _go_!" she whispered, closing the door. Fiyero stood waving foolishly at the closed entrance, before coming to his senses and bolting across the garden, leaping joyfully over the rosebushes as he went.

* * *

Just as Elphaba had perched herself calmly on the rickety wooden chair, the kitchen door opened and her father entered.

"Hello, Papa," the young woman smiled, swallowing a bite of the cookie Fiyero had left abandoned on the tabletop. Frex returned the grin sleepily.

"Couldn't sleep either?" yawned the older man, crossing to the deep sink and filling a glass with water. "Well, I was sleeping quite happily," he corrected himself, "But Melena wanted a drink, so here I am. What a husband will do for his wife, eh, my sweet?" Frex laughed and crossed to his daughter, stealing a cookie.

"Father?" Elphaba said, just as he was going to leave the room.

"Yes, Fabala?" he replied quietly, amazed that his daughter was actually volunteering conversation after six months of ignoring him completely.

"I love you," she whispered shyly, dunking another cookie into the glass of milk.

"I know. I love you too…We all do. And we miss you…Come back to us, darling."

* * *

Elphaba joined her family at breakfast the next morning, much to Melena's surprise. She settled back in her usual place as though she had never left it, all while helping herself to coffee and toast. She conversed easily with Nessarose and Shell, clearly as devoted to them now as she ever had been. The redhead was having an extremely difficult time understanding her unpredictable daughter, who seemed to be able to snap from the depths of despair to the heights of happiness within two days. When Frex relaxed into the pleasant conversation, she decided to do the same. Surely she had never been _this _unmanageable as a teenager!

* * *

When Elphaba returned to her room that afternoon, she found a book on her bedside cabinet that had not been there before. The binding was of azure silk, embossed with swirling silver vines. The name 'Fae' was printed in the bottom right hand corner, and the parchment pages were all blank, save a small note on the very first.

'_Fae,' _it read, _'Use this diary as an outlet for that brilliant mind of yours. I know how much you love to write, so fill these pages with your hopes, your dreams, your happiness, your anger…Anything. In Wend Hardings there is a little Unionist chapel, and the Minister there has agreed to marry us. Meet me there at eleven tonight. I love you. Yero.'_

Elphaba weighed the book in her hands, smoothing her long fingers over the sleek cover. It felt good in her grasp, the texture of the paper was pleasant and the smell of 'new book' made her head spin with delight, just as it used to. A pen and ink were lying close by, and the young woman could not resist filling the first blank page after Fiyero's note with her own spiky handwriting; babbling incessantly about her nerves and excitement for the night to come.

Another letter from Glinda lay unopened on Elphaba's dresser, and her exuberant mood encouraged her to open it. The blonde had not stopped writing to her friend during the interim of time Elphaba had kept herself shut up. She apologised for her injudicious behaviour constantly, and tried to brighten the green girl's mood with talk of silly things that Glinda herself didn't even find especially amusing.

The tone of her most recent letter, however, was defeated and cheerless. Elphaba felt guilty when she noticed the lack of usual bounce and vigour. The letter read,

'_Dear Elphaba,_

_I'm sorry. I have tried and tried to make you realise how really, truly __sorry __I am for what I did to you. In all honesty, I'm still not entirely sure what that was, but I know that it had something to do with Prince Fiyero, and I know that it must have been awful. I'm sure you realise that I was grieving, and it caused me to lash out at you, which was completely unreasonable and selfish. _

_If you love Prince Fiyero, Elphaba, I am not going to hold it against you or hate you for it. Goodness knows, if he loves you in return, I may even envy you a little. But please, please, __please__, my dear friend, at least reply to this letter. Let me know if you can ever forgive me for treating you so hatefully, and if you can't, put me out of my misery. Just inform me, one way or the other, Elphie. _

_If you do not reply to this letter, I will understand that as your way of telling me that forgiveness is denied, which I hope it is not. _

_Ever your loving friend,_

_Glinda'_

A regretful tear slid down Elphaba's verdant cheek as she understood the genuine anguish in her friend's words, and mentally scolded herself for being so stubborn and withholding forgiveness. Without a second thought, Elphaba replied to Glinda's letter. She knew that it would take at least a week to reach the Pertha Hills in Gillikin, so she could afford to tell her of her impending marriage.

'_My dear, dear friend!_

_Consider yourself forgiven, Glinda, not that there is anything to forgive. I have been wallowing so deep in my own self pity for the last few months, I didn't even contemplate forgiving you for something that you didn't even really do. _

_I'm sorry about your Grandfather, Glin, I really am. However, you were right; I am in love with Fiyero. I'm afraid that I'm about to be rather out of character, and hope that you don't mind me telling you about the events of the last twelve hours! (I can barely write, I'm so keyed up!)_

_Because I refused to tell our parents about our being in love just after Rilt died, and because I agreed to come to the funeral with you, Fiyero felt that I did not love him enough, and told me he didn't want to see me again until I was no longer ashamed of him. Needless to say, Glinny, I was distraught on that carriage ride to the Pertha Hills! I didn't see him, nor write to him for six months, nor will I bother your pretty little head about what I __did __do during that time._

_Then, last night, on his way back from a party (my birthday party, which I refused to attend…None of my family went, either), he ended up at Colwen Grounds, right underneath my window! We argued a little, of course, but then we made up, and…Oh, I can barely even think to tell to! _

_He asked me to marry him! I know, I'm being foolish and girly and ridiculously unlike my usual self, but I'm so delirious with happiness I can barely think straight. We are going to be married tonight, in a little chapel in the Wend Hardings, and in the morning we will tell my parents when there is nothing they can do about it. _

_Anyway, I hope __you __don't hate __**me **__for marrying him so soon after your Grandfather. Please give us your blessing, my dear! It really would mean the world to me._

_Ever your (slightly giddy) friend,_

_Elphaba (the Delirious)'_

Upon reading the letter over, Elphaba had to laugh at her excessive use of parenthesis, and the sheer, unbounded enthusiasm in her tone. When simply sitting in the quiet, the bright energy of the girl who wrote the letter seemed to elude Elphaba, and she remained her usual stoic, composed self. It appeared that her hidden feelings had dashed, unwilled, from her pen, as though she subconsciously knew that Glinda would accept them.

* * *

Fiyero's nose had lost all feeling by ten to eleven that night, so cold was the little churchyard in which he waited for Elphaba. He stamped his feet heavily on the freezing earth, the warmth of his breath forming mesmerising little clouds whenever he exhaled.

He was wearing a cloak, pulled high over his head so as to disguise his face in the shadows. It wouldn't be fitting for a prince and a princess [for, in Munchkinland society, that was what Elphaba's position amounted to] to marry out with a royal ceremony, so they had to do it in secret.

The diamond tattoos that decorated his body would soon be transferred to Elphaba's smooth skin by his own hand, and the thought of the azure diamonds on her emerald skin made every nerve in his body tingle with delight. This was a custom in the Vinkus: any woman marrying into the royal family must be marked with the sacred tattoos by her own husband, who had been taught to ink the intricate patterns onto flesh since his boyhood. Fiyero didn't know if that ritual would be done tonight, or left till another. He had brought the dyes and such with him, just in case.

Over the crest of the hill marched a thin figure swathed in an ebony cloak. She was backlit by the moon, and Fiyero could see she wore a strange black hat atop her head; wide brimmed and pointed. Elphaba entered the churchyard and approached him nervously.

"I wore gloves," she muttered, "You now how recognisable this damn skin is." Fiyero nodded and ducked under the brim of her hat to press a doting kiss on her cheek.

"Come on then," he smiled, taking her gloved fingers in his own and leading her into the chapel.

The Minister was waiting.

* * *

**And now you shall have to wait! :) **


	18. Chapter 17

**Just cheese and fluffle. What more could you want? :) And never fear, there will be no interruptions this time. For once, all will go smoothly. Thank you for all of the lovely reviews! And cheers muchos to whoever got me to the 100. I greatly appreciate it! **

**By the way, my pretties, sorry for the rubbish-y vows. I'm not the sentimental type, so I'm afraid I just mashed together a few different versions that I have heard instead of writing my own.**

**And yes, it would be a bit obvious if she went home with blue diamonds on her skin, but who says that they'll be in a noticeable place? [not meant to sound as dirty as it did] That may be my point. I don't know. We shall see. **

* * *

The alter of the chapel was lit by a few candles, and the Minister stood beside it in a simple white robe. He looked askance at Elphaba, swathed to the chin in black, and Fiyero, who's face was barely illuminated by the faint candlelight. He mentally shrugged off his confusion and welcomed the young pair with open arms.

"Welcome, my children!" He noticed that the young woman hung back a little. Her companion squeezed her hand reassuringly and murmured something in her ear, and she stepped forward.

"Hello, sir," the voice of a young man said confidently, taking his place in front of the alter. The girl stood beside him, keeping her face down.

* * *

"I promise to love and honour you my whole life, you and no other. I promise I will be yours to have and to hold from this point onward, as long as we both may live," Elphaba smiled, repeating the Minister's words with the passionate fervency that had made Fiyero fall in love with her in the first place. He could see her eyes dancing under the wide brim of her hat, and felt the pace of his heart speed up with surprising alacrity. She slid the simple silver band onto the ring finger of his left hand, and he caught her wide smile in the shadows.

"And now you, my son," the Minister said softly, handing a slimmer silver ring to Fiyero. The young man grinned widely as he recited the short vow, pouring as much emotion as he could into the words.

"I promise to love and honour you my whole life, you and no other. I promise I will be yours to have and to hold from this point onward, as long as we both may live."

Fiyero realised that he would not be able to get the ring on Elphaba's hand if it remained gloved, so he eased off the black silk garment and slipped the it onto her elegant finger. Beside them, the Minister jumped in surprise when the young woman's verdant skin came into view, and he stared at her slim, youthful hand in disbelief. After gaping unattractively for a moment or two, a soft cough from Fiyero brought him back to his senses.

"Do forgive me!" he muttered. "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss your bride," he said quickly, anxious to get to bed. Lack of sleep had of course tricked his mind; the girl's skin could not be green. When she tilted her face up to receive a kiss from her new husband, the dim light illuminated her again, and this time the hue was unmistakable. The Minister shook his head, confused. He congratulated them then bid them goodnight, watching with a raised eyebrow and they hurried from the little chapel. _'Strange,' _he thought.

* * *

Elphaba and Fiyero lingered just few minutes away from the chapel, unsure of their next move. Elphaba had removed her hat and gloves, and Fiyero took his hood down, and they stood in the moonlight, thinking. Neither of them spoke, and Fiyero held her bright hand in his, stroking her palm soothingly with his thumb.

"So…" the young woman said quietly, a strange, unfamiliar nervousness appearing in her tummy.

"My family have a house a few miles from here. It's never in use, so we can spend the night there, and you can get back to Colwen Grounds at first light." Fiyero explained, his neat white teeth chattering with the cold. Elphaba nodded slowly, and allowed herself to be led off into the night.

They reached the house much sooner than Elphaba had expected to, and a shudder of apprehension rippled down her spine. Fiyero felt the slight shiver, and once they were inside, he turned to look at her.

"What's wrong, Fae?" he asked gently, stroking a runaway strand of her raven hair behind her ear. Elphaba laughed self consciously, casting her dark eyes to the floor.

"It's just…" she murmured, mentally cursing herself for having such awkward timing.

"What? What is it?"

"I'm not _scared_, if that's what you think!" the young woman muttered staunchly. Fiyero simply looked down at her, his brow creased in endearing confusion. "It's just, the last time I…Rilt, he…Oz, I'm _green_, Yero. And you have no idea _how _green I am! It's not just confined to my face and my hands. I am _completely _emerald. Everywhere. I don't want you to be repulsed when you see it. I don't think I could bear for you to react the way that Rilt did," she admitted, gazing up at him with a desperation that almost tore his heart in two.

"I'm not going to be repulsed! I promise," he replied sincerely, but Elphaba shook her head.

"You can't know that, not until you see it. I won't blame you if you run away into the night screaming."

"Trust me when I say that is not the kind of screaming that I intend on doing tonight, just the same as I don't intend on being the only one doing it," her new husband replied cheekily, trying to lighten the mood. Elphaba rolled her eyes and sighed worriedly, running an anxious hand through her hair.

"Don't worry, love!" he amended quickly, snaking his arms around her waist and pressing a light kiss to her jaw.

* * *

Elphaba kissed him fiercely then pulled away, her eyes dancing with a whole spectrum of emotions. Fiyero, though surprisingly deep himself, always wondered how one person could be so passionate about so many different things at the one time and not explode. Elphaba's eyes were not just the window to _her _soul; she felt enough for ten thousand others. Slowly, silently, she reached behind her and fumbled with the buttons of her dress.

Terrified that this would be the last time she would see Fiyero [she fully expected him to bolt as soon as he saw the smooth green planes of her body], Elphaba's fingers shook so badly she could not get the last few difficult buttons undone. Her companion stepped to her back and undid them for her, sliding the heavy black material from her slender shoulders. It seemed to linger warily at the tops of her arms, so as to just reveal her emerald back: a little at a time. _'Gently does it,' _she thought. She tensed, expecting to hear the door slam any moment.

Fiyero, on the other hand, had no thoughts about running away from her. His bright eyes marvelled at the smooth skin before him, and he immediately reached out, running the tip of his finger down the length of her spine. Elphaba shivered.

Wordlessly, he pushed her dress entirely away from her body, allowing himself to take in the amazing lushness of her colouring. She was thinner than he had thought, but there were suggestions of femininity around her softly curved hips and well defined waist. He treaded carefully around to her face again, letting his large hands linger temptingly on her shoulders.

Her dark eyes were fearful when they connected with his own. She trembled under his touch, and almost blushed as his alert eyes roved the front of her body. Though she wasn't exactly innocent, she had never recalled being this naked in front of anyone while still being in full control of all her faculties. This was new, and Fiyero's intense expression made her fearful.

"Well?" she croaked, her voice lost somewhere in the depths of her throat.

Fiyero's handsome face broke into an enchanting smile. The young man swallowed his new nerves, and whispered, "Elphaba…You're absolutely beautiful." The conviction in his words set Elphaba at her ease.

"This seems a little unfair, doesn't it?" she grinned devilishly.

"What's a little unfair?"

"The fact that you still have so many clothes on," the young woman giggled. "I want to see those pretty diamonds again,"

"Oh you do, do you?"

Fiyero needed no further encouragement.

* * *

**Guh. Well, now that _that's _settled...**

**kthnxbailolz :D**


	19. Chapter 18

**I really do not like this chapter! That and 'thank you for the reviews!' is all I am going to say.**

**Sorry. :\ **

* * *

Elphaba propped herself up on one pointy elbow and gazed down at Fiyero's sleeping form. He snuffled a little and buried his nose into the downy pillow, muttering something unintelligible. He slid his arm around her waist, and the young woman tensed at the unexpected and yet oddly pleasurable sensation of his skin on hers. She smiled and brushed his feathery dark hair out of his eyes, which fluttered open.

"Good morning," she whispered, ignoring the fact that it was still dark outside; it was barely two o'clock. Fiyero's fingers danced along the small of her back, and he shuffled up so that they were nose to nose.

"Good morning," he returned, planting an indulgent kiss on her smiling lips.

The young woman smiled tenderly at her husband. "I can't believe this is actually happening! Am I really here with you like this? I'm not dreaming, am I?" Her expression became slightly worried, and Fiyero tapped the tip of her nose affectionatley with one finger.

"I can promise you, sweetheart, that this is not a dream," he assured her. "I mean, you're not crazy enough to create _me _in you imagination, and I'm not creative enough to think up a beauty like you." She kissed him then, softly and sweetly.

"Fair enough," she laughed, still not truly believing.

* * *

"Twenty four hours ago," Fiyero mused, tangling his fingers in the ends of her long hair, "I was at a birthday party, drinking myself into oblivion because I thought I would never see you again." Elphaba laughed and sank back into the bed, stretching her arms above her head.

"That's quite funny," she chuckled. "I mean, look at you now. You're _married _to me. Oz, that feels wonderful to say!" Fiyero beamed and nodded in agreement, caressing the ring on her left hand. Elphaba sighed contentedly and brushed her lips along his collarbone, lingering on the bright diamonds. Her husband groaned quietly and pulled her up so as to kiss her lips again.

"Oh!" he gasped, suddenly remembering the tattoo ink in his bag by the side of the bed.

"Yero?"

"The tattoos! I'm supposed to give you the tattoos!" he cried, leaping out from underneath the duvet. He ignored the rush of icy winter air that enveloped him, and Elphaba lazily devoured his body with her eyes, considering it the most divine sight she had even witnessed.

"What are you talking about?" she enquired, yawning widely and savouring the delicious tiredness that made her limbs heavy and her mind swim a little.

Fiyero gestured to his tattoos and explained about the tradition that had been in place for centuries in the Vinkus. Elphaba listened raptly, but saw one tiny flaw in the plan.

"Wouldn't it be a little obvious to everyone if I turn up at the breakfast table with a set of tattoos that I didn't have when I went to bed? I know we're going to _tell _them within the next few days, but…"

"No, no, no, silly. I'll only put them on your tummy for now."

His new wife quirked a perplexed eyebrow. "Why?"

"Symbolism," he shrugged. Another bewildered look from Elphaba prompted an explanation. "Okay. Well, the first ones that a woman gets is the ones on her tummy, and apparently it's supposed to symbolise the children that will grow there. The ones _I _have symbolise different things. The ones here, on my chest, are for courage and compassion. The ones on my right hand are for strength, the ones on my left for justice." He smiled devilishly. "And the ones on my d-"

"Yero! Please!" Elphaba cried with mock disgust, pushing his arm lightly to show she was only teasing. The young man laughed apologetically. "Well, those ones are for fertility, anyway."

* * *

The green girl screwed her eyes up as Fiyero administered the dye for the tattoos, using an ancient tribal method that was outdated in the other parts of Oz. He had warned her that the traditional way hurt more than the more modern technique, but Elphaba had waved it aside, assuring him that she was above physical pain. She realised that she had not bargained on the sting of the needle as it penetrated her flesh, or the oozing discomfort of the bright dye as it settled underneath her skin.

"Are you alright, Fae?" Fiyero asked gently, finishing the final diamond and throwing the implements over his shoulder into his bag. Elphaba nodded and relinquished her vice like grip on the bed sheets, her eyes opening to reveal her dazed expression.

She sat up slowly, gripping his hands like her life depended on it. "Ouch!"

Fiyero grinned sympathetically and kissed the tip of her long nose. "I know, I'm sorry. But they look good!" he assured her, pleased to note how beautifully the colours complimented each other. Elphaba looked askance at him, before glancing down at her tummy. The area around each little diamond was slightly red and inflamed, but the stunning blue almost shone against her verdant skin. The line of tattoos began just between her breasts and ran down her stomach, looping hypnotically around her navel and then swirling out to either side. They pleased her, and she was filled with glee at her husband's skilful work.

"So does this mean we're _properly _married now? As far as the Vinkus royal family goes?" Elphaba smiled, winding her arms around Fiyero's shoulders and pressing her body flush against his, diamond to diamond.

"Indeed, my sweet," he replied. The young woman laughed and pushed him backwards, pinning him down underneath her.

"We're going to have to leave in a couple of hours, Yero. They can't realise that I've been gone." she murmured, leaving a trail of hot open mouthed kisses down his throat. Fiyero smirked and flipped her over, gathering her legs around his waist.

He kissed her ardently, muttering, "Then let's not waste any time!"

* * *

Elphaba opened the front door of Colwen Grounds as quietly as possible, pressing a finger to her lips as a sign to be silent. Fiyero rolled his eyes and made a pantomime of being annoyed, as she looked as though she was miming to a child. She glared at him from underneath her eyelashes, her lips pursing comically.

"Sorry!" Fiyero chuckled almost inaudibly, catching her wrist slyly and bestowing a repentant kiss upon her palm. Elphaba shrugged him off but smiled dotingly, curling one finger as a signal for him to follow her.

The were going to wait in the dining room until her parents got up: a short, sharp shock was probably best, they believed. Elphaba slid through the door that had been left ajar, and got the shock of her life to see Melena and Frex already sitting at the table, conversing calmly over a glass of milk and a packet of cookies. The similarity to Elphaba and Fiyero just a day or so before was almost comic, but when her parents turned their knowing eyes upon her, she no longer felt like laughing.

"And where in the name of Lurline have you been?" Melena snapped quietly, patiently laying her cookie down on the table. Frex flinched.

"Honestly, my love, is there any need for paganisms?" he asked, clasping his hands before him as though in prayer. He hated the name of any deity to be taken in vain, real or not.

"Hush, Frex. Well, Elphaba?" the redhead said calmly, turning her dark eyes upon her daughter. Elphaba's own eyes darted around the room for an excuse: she hadn't foreseen this moment coming upon her so quickly!

"I…uh…" she muttered, for once actually at a loss for words.

"I went into your room last night to borrow a book and you were gone! I couldn't believe it! But now here you are, and I'd quite like to know what's been going on, young lady!" her mother fumed, failing to keep her temper.

Just then, Elphaba realised that Fiyero's hand was still held within her own, and that he was on the other side of the door. Melena, in her anger, did not notice, and neither did Frex, because he was just confused. The young woman tugged on his arm and the Prince came stumbling through the door, his cobalt eyes alert. They both visibly steeled themselves with identical expressions, and Melena's own expression morphed to match that of her husband.

Fiyero could feel Elphaba shaking, but knew that she would not appreciate his speaking for her. A few moments of palpable tension and puzzlement reigned, before being broken by Elphaba's strong, clear voice.

"Mother, Father, Fiyero and I are married," she stated confidently, raising her chin proudly. She turned to her husband and exhaled in relief, resting her cheek on his shoulder and nuzzling her nose into his neck for comfort. Her parents remained dumb with shock, and for once it was her father who recovered first.

"I-uh…Eh…I hope this act was done in a sanctified house of the Unnamed God," he stuttered, much to Melena's horror.

"Of course, Brother Frexspar," Fiyero assured him, while his young wife nodded vigorously at his side.

Melena was still silent.

"I wish you had told us, my girl! I would have been only too happy to perform the ceremony myself!" Frex exclaimed, his pride hurt. Elphaba was slightly confused at the reactions of her parents. She had expected them to be either angry or happy; but instead they seemed to be both and neither at the same time. The girl glanced pointedly at Melena, who's steely posture relaxed slightly.

"Prove it," the woman said stonily, unable to believe that such an event occurred. The younger woman held up her left hand. "A ring is not _proof_, young lady. If you really have married this boy, then-"

"I have the tattoos." Elphaba said hurriedly. Frex's eyebrows seemed to shoot up past the point of his hairline. Melena motioned for him to turn around, which he did, and with Fiyero's help Elphaba proudly displayed the new ornaments on her stomach.

The redhead blanched. "You should _not _have done this, Elphaba! You barely know the boy!"

"I spent a month with him in the summer!"

"Yes, and you were still married to Rilt then. As far as I can see you were barely even friends!"

"I loved him even then, mother!" Elphaba shrieked, and irately explained the whole episode to her parents.

"You mean to say that it was this boy who caused you months of distress? I feared for your _life_, you were so miserable! How can you just up and marry him without any thoughts to the consequences, just because you were happy to see him? This is utterly ridiculous!" Melena was seething. In all honesty, she was actually rather happy for her daughter, but she was hurt that the girl had not thought to confide in her.

"Your Eminence, if I may-"

"No, you may not, my son." Frex cut Fiyero off with a wave of his hand. This was between the women.

Elphaba turned imploringly to her father, then to Fiyero. "Yero, can't you make her see _sense_?" she pleaded, knowing perfectly well that her husband was powerless here.

Melena saw the adoration in the young couple's eyes, and felt her anger waning. However, she continued on to preserve the illusion of her status. "When was this done?" snapped the Eminent Thropp.

"Around thirty clock ticks after eleve last night, mother."

"Where?"

"In a little chapel in the hamlet of Wend Hardings."

"I can only hope that you have not...**sealed the deal**, as it were." Melena saw Fiyero's arms slide protectively around her daughter's waist.

"We have, mother," Elphaba blushed. "Twice." she added quietly with a low chuckle, standing on her tiptoes to recieve a sweet little kiss.

Melena now realised that there was no way to undo the deed, so decided to accept her defeat graciously. She sighed and let a smile creep onto her lips. Advancing towards them, she opened her arms welcomingly.

"Very well then. Welcome, my son." Fiyero allowed himself to be embraced by both Melena and Frex.

"Now all we have to do is tell _my _parents!" he laughed, and Elphaba shook her head.

"And Glinda."

Fiyero paled.

* * *

**Guh. That was rubbish, sorry. But please don't tell me that...It hurts my soul! :( **


	20. Chapter 19

**And now, the end is near, and so we face, the final chapter... :) **

**This story has grated on my nerves for a while, because I have struggled with characterisation. But hey, it's almost over now. An epilogue and then we will be finished!**

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed...Even if some of them did irk me a little. :) **

**By the way, I'm Scottish, and I felt the need to include one of my favourite Robert Burns poems in chapter, although only by name. **

**Well, enjoy!**

* * *

Shell Thropp, at the grand old age of six, considered himself quite the little gentleman. He was an observant, intelligent child, and had already been advanced two classes at his boarding school in the Emerald City. When the King of Vinkus pronounced him a 'fine young lad', he had been happier than a bird in springtime. The Queen ruffled his hair affectionately, and he treated the company to a lisping rendition of 'Ae Fond Kiss' by the Munchkin poet Rabbie Boq.

Melena and Frex gazed fondly at their only son, and then at the royal couple across from them. They hadn't informed Fiyero's parents of his marriage via their letter, instead preferring to drop the bombshell face to face.

Or, indeed, letting Elphaba and Fiyero drop the bombshell, face to face.

They had not even informed Nessarose or little Shell of their new 'brother'; they wanted to gauge the reactions of Biaxana and Follor first. Fiyero, as far as the younger Thropp siblings were concerned, was simply at their house on a little visit for a week or two.

"Go and fetch Fabala, sweetness!" Melena cooed, patting the little boy's dark head and propelling him in the direction of the door. He left with a cheeky grin and the royal couple smiled after him, missing the time when Fiyero, their only child, was that young.

* * *

Polite conversation filled the interim: babble about the fashions of the Vinkus [Melena had admired the Queen's striking scarlet robes] and an obscure political party in the Emerald City. Inside their respective minds, however, thoughts of a much different nature were circulating.

Biaxana wondered when Melena would bite the bullet and inform them that their children were in love, and were soon to be married.

Follor wondered where in Oz Brother Frexspar got his rather _dashing_ hat.

Melena wondered how the Queen would react to her son being married off to a green girl in the middle of the night with no witnesses but an unnamed Minister, with no apparent way out of the union other than the death of one or both parties involved.

Frex wondered where in Oz King Follor got his rather _dashing_ shoes.

Shell wondered why his mother wasn't answering as he tugged relentlessly on her sleeve. His little face contorted with annoyance; as the token boy of the family, he was not used to being ignored.

"Mama, mama, mama, mama, mama, mama…**Mama!**" the little boy bellowed as loudly as his lungs would allow. The redhead turned her eyes upon him, as if only just realising that he was even at her side.

"Yes, my love?" Melena returned, pulling her precious son onto her lap. "Did you find Fabala?" she added as an afterthought, desperate to get the whole debacle out of the way. Shell nodded.

"Well, son, where is she? Mama asked you to fetch her, remember?" Frex smiled kindly, and Shell rolled his eyes in a perfect imitation of his older sisters. Biaxana and Follor watched from the settee opposite, smiling.

Until, that is, Shell opened his mouth and let his next words spill out happily. "Fabala is still in her room, Papa. She was playing a wrestling game with the Winkie Prince man, only they didn't have any clothes on and they were making funny noises, and it didn't look like fun, so I didn't ask to join in."

Frex coloured, Melena paled, Follor looked nonplussed and Biaxana's brow creased infinitesimally.

* * *

A moment of heavy silence passed, and Melena shook herself into the mentality of the Eminent Thropp, rather than a mother.

"Did Elphaba or the Prince see you, Shell?" she pursued grimly, thinning her full lips into a hard line to show her displeasure. Shell caught his mother's distaste, and his contented smile drooped.

"No, ma'am."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Alright. Remain here, with your father. I will go and fetch your sister from her…play." She didn't need her six year old knowing the ins and outs of adulthood _quite _yet, so she kept up the pretence. Biaxana followed her from the room.

* * *

Once they were out of earshot, Biaxana addressed the smaller woman without anger. "Your Eminence, would you kindly tell me _what _in the name of Kumbricia is going on?" Melena took a deep breath, pulling herself up to her full height in an ineffective attempt to look authoritarian.

"My daughter Elphaba and your son Fiyero were married four days ago, Your Grace, in a chapel not far from here. It was entirely without my knowledge, let me assure you! I know full well what the repercussions could be if…"

Biaxana's beaming smile silenced Melena's sentence.

"Why, is that all? That is _wonderful _news! I had expected you to inform us of their engagement, but a **marriage**? Lurline above, that saves us all a lot of time and trouble!" the Queen beamed, gathering the bewildered redhead into a bone crushing embrace.

"But-but Your Majesty-"

"You are happy to see her happy, are you not?"

"Of course I am, but-"

"Well, my dear, I do not see the problem. In the Vinkus, we are not above allowing our children to marry for _love_. We do not especially care where the act is performed, either. So long as they care for one another, and see each other through hard times. Isn't that what you want for Elphaba?"

"Yes. Yes it is," Melena admitted, allowing a faint smile to grace her lips and soften her grave expression. Biaxana patted her fondly on the head before taking her arm and leading her back towards the parlour.

"Then let us not interrupt our children in their pursuits, my sister. My husband must know the truth!"

When the women re-entered the parlour arm in arm, Frex was shuffling around in Follor's post box red shoes: they were far too large for him, and he giggled like a child as they almost fell off. The king sat on the velveteen settee with Frex's favourite mustard hat perched at a jaunty angle atop his ebony curls, roaring in delight. Shell's expression of perplexity was priceless. Follor took the news well, which left only three people left to tell.

Shell, who would glory at the idea of having a big brother.

Nessarose, who would find great rapture in the happiness of her sister, though would secretly wonder when the same lucky chance would befall her.

And Glinda, who, unbeknownst to anyone but Elphaba, already knew.

* * *

When she had opened the letter, Glinda Upland had not been able to believe her eyes. She had been in the middle of a piano lesson, and had rather frightened her poor instructor by laughing in hysterical delight one minute then steadily dissolving into angry tears the next. The Gillikinese girl had been exuberant at Elphie's forgiveness, and had chuckled gleefully when her friend launched into her out of character display of joy, and had even felt her heart soar in happiness for her once unhappy friend when she learned that she would be married.

But then the face of her grandfather swam into her mind. The image only lasted a moment, and she shook it away; Elphaba deserved to be happy, and there was no way that Rilt would ever have given her that.

Glinda cried angrily because she had not known _sooner_, and therefore had been denied the opportunity of wearing her stunning new dress, shoes and hat ensemble in the most divine lemon colour. In the candlelight of a church, it would have set off her golden curls beautifully.

Resolved to berate Elphaba for this oversight, the little blonde immediately ordered her carriage, packed four suitcases [one never knew what kind of clothes one would need on a trip to visit important friends!] kissed her parents artfully on both cheeks, and set off for Munchkinland.

* * *

"I cannot believe your parents took it so well!" Elphaba cried enthusiastically, twisting her waterfall of raven hair back into a rather untidy bun. Fiyero helpfully skewered it with a few hairpins thrust in at random angles. Surprisingly, it held, and the young woman turned to her husband and gazed up at him from the stool at her dressing table.

He stood tall and resplendent, with a new air of dignity and maturity about him as he ran one long thumb affectionately across her high cheekbone.

"No, I don't believe it myself," he chuckled, dropping to his knees in front of her. Kneeling on the floor, he was nose to nose with her sitting above him.

Elphaba groaned and pretended to push down on his head, as though trying to take inches off his impressive height. He sank obligingly from his knees and ended up cross legged in front of her.

"Why can't you shrink a bit?" she moaned, pouting childishly. Fiyero laughed fondly and pulled her legs into his lap.

"Why can't you _grow _a bit?" he retorted teasingly, tracing soothing circles on the top of her left foot with his forefinger.

"Were you ever a dancer, Fae?" the young man asked, noticing the definition and elegance of her calf muscles. The green girl shrugged and looked away, her brown eyes a little embarrassed.

"You were, weren't you! Oz, I had no idea! What kind of dancing did you do?"

"Oh, Yero. I haven't danced for about ten months, and I don't expect I ever will again. I don't want to talk about it,"

"You can't expect me to lie between these beautiful legs every night and not tell me their history!" Fiyero pleaded, noticing Elphaba irritated glare was accompanied by a slightly lopsided smile. He kissed her hand gently, trying [and failing] to look seductively up at her from under his eyelashes. She batted him away, laughing.

"Stop it, you fool!" she chortled. "Alright, alright. I _was_ a ballet dancer. I have been since I was…Oz, since I was about three. I'm a singer too, you might as well know that while we're at it. Nessa is a better dancer, but _I'm _a better singer. I'm a classical soprano," Elphaba added with a slightly superior tone. Fiyero was surprised.

"Really? And why am I only hearing about this now?" he gasped, rising back to his feet, pulling her with him while sliding his arms around her slender waist.

"You never asked!" his wife shot back, poking her tongue out at him.

"Hm." was all Fiyero could think of to say, and rather than let Elphaba think that she had won the little non-argument, he kissed her instead. "I think you should keep dancing…It's sexy." he added as a little aside, and all his verdant wife could do was smile wryly before her disparaging reply was silenced by his soft lips.

* * *

"El-_phieee_!" Glinda shrieked, waving one tiny hand out of the window as Elphaba approached on her horse. The green girl squinted ahead, urging Wit forward towards the ravishing white carriage. The blonde screamed shrilly and tottered down the little steps onto the gravel, twisting her ankle slightly in her new shoes [the lemon ones].

Wit turned his head back to Elphaba who patted his neck reassuringly then dismounted. She had to contain a laugh at the disgusted expression in his soulful black eyes as he took in the squealing, bouncing girl.

"Glinny! It's so wonderfu-" Elphaba began, but found all of the air squeezed from her body when Glinda took her into her arms for a tight hug.

The blonde, on the other hand, somehow retained enough air to gabble at full speed. "Oh, Elphie! I missed you so much! I thought that you were never going to reply to that letter, but then you did and you forgave me and, **oh my Oz! **That must mean that you're married to Fiyero by now!"

Here, she paused for breath. Elphaba tried to speak, but Glinda began again.

"It's just too wonderful that you married him even after I did all that horrible thing to you! I'm so happy for you! But then again I am a little mad at you, because you didn't get engaged sooner so that meant that I couldn't wear my new yellow outfit to your wedding, and, well, Elphie, _that wasn't nice_!" she shrieked, her mood swinging unexpectedly into a rage.

Her petite hand suddenly whipped up from her side and caught Elphaba straight on the cheek.

Glinda exhaled peacefully, all of her pent up energy gone. She was grateful when her friend laughed off the little slap that always allowed her to let off steam.

"Feel better now?" Elphaba smiled sweetly, something lurking behind the friendliness in her dark eyes.

"Yes, thank you, I do!" Glinda beamed in return. Abruptly, Elphaba wiped the smile from her perfect little face with a stinging slap of her own.

"Good, so do I." Her smile was genuinely content now, as though slapping Glinda was something she had wanted to do for a long time. The blonde's lip trembled, but then she brushed it aside. If either of them had deserved that slap, it was herself, especially after the way she had treated her friend at Kiamo Ko.

"I really did miss you, Lin," Elphaba murmured apologetically a few moments later, gripping the hand that the blonde had slapped her with tightly within her own. Glinda's green eyes softened.

"I missed you too, dear," she smiled. Now that her pent up energy had been released, she could afford to take her friend into a more sedate hug.

Fiyero watched from the window, utterly confused. He never _would _understand women…But when Elphaba tossed back her head and laughed, he realised that just maybe, one day, he might understand at least a little bit of her.

He didn't mind spending his whole life trying.

* * *

**:D**


	21. Epilogue

**Oh, well. Here we are. Epilogue. **

* * *

The marriage of the young people had been met with great approval from the four corners of Oz. They lived happily in Kiamo Ko _and _Colwen Grounds, moving back and forth as the mood took them. They participated in classes with a tutor from Shiz University (a Doctor Dillamond, whom Elphaba adored). He was helping them work towards their degrees and still allowing them time for their political business.

Elphaba began dancing and singing again, and Fiyero proved himself quite accomplished in the arts as well. Their days were spent learning how to govern, horse riding, reading, talking and laughing. Their evenings they spent with their families and friends, and their nights they spent with one another, growing closer by the day.

* * *

During the Lurlinemas dinner a little over a year after Elphaba and Fiyero married, Follor enquired about the likelyhood of children. Fiyero had blushed a little, a little embarrassed that the topic had been brought up in front of so many people. Elphaba, on the other hand, had simply laid a calm hand on her husband's and replied that anything could happen. The young couple shared adoring smiles, and returned to dinner.

Melena was almost certain she saw something new in her daughter, and smiled. She had a feeling that children would come sooner than Fiyero and everyone else expected.

* * *

Excusing herself for a moment, Elphaba climbed the stairs to her bedroom and opened the door, sidling over to the mirror. With a contented sigh she dropped her purple silk dress to the floor and inspected the blue diamonds on her stomach. There were still no blights, no imperfections, although her imagination fancied there was a slight, graceful swell to her abdomen.

She waved the premature notion away, but continued to beam at her reflection in the glass. It was far too early to know for sure, but her magic had given her some foresight. And the young woman foresaw a baby; a beautiful baby, with her hair and Fiyero's eyes and skin.

Singing softly, Elphaba wondered at the transformation of herself over the last eighteen months. If she had been in this position with _Rilt, _she would have tried to abort the child that grew inside her. But this child was Fiyero's, and hers, and already she felt an unbreakable bond forming with the little creature.

Elphaba folded her hands protectively over her tummy. Fiyero would be told soon… but it would be a while before she would tell anyone else this precious little secret.

* * *

**Fin.**


	22. Sequel?

**One more thing before I love you and leave you for a while...Once I have concentrated on a few other ideas that have been buzzing around my mind for a long time, would anyone like a sequel? **

**Just a suggestion, my pretties.**

**Thank you, goodnight. **

**xx**


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